Under the Stars
by Twilight Fantasy
Summary: a hermione and draco fanfic (cuz they're just SO cute together) *THANKS ARE NOW UP* *COMPLETE*
1. Falling

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Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, settings, etc. Plot's mine though!

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Author's Note: Heya… I just felt like something fluffy between Draco and Hermione cuz they just look so cute together in the movie. The POV changes back and forth here (excuse my inconsistent ways), so without further ado, here's a short DM/HG story for your enjoyment! And if you'd like to add to my own enjoyment, please REVIEW!

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Under the Stars

Chapter 1: Falling

"The star Ahienda is located in the Upper Traxian Galaxy which is approximately 1002.46 light years away from earth," Hermione said. 

"Very good, Hermione. Ten points to Gryfinndor," Professor Sinistra responded. Draco let out a loud groan. It was nearly one in the morning, and he was falling asleep in class. Who needed to know about stars and planets anyway?

"Who cares about some star located billions of miles away. It doesn't have any effect over us. Besides, I could have named it if I wanted to," he sneered at Hermione. Hermione turned around and glared at him. Draco was now glad that it was late as it was and that the lesson was extremely boring. Harry had fallen into a stupor and Ron was snoozing on the desk beside Hermione. Had any of them been paying any attention, there would have been trouble- especially with Ron and his extreme emotions whenever Hermione was involved.

"Oh really?" Hermione hissed. "Let's see it, then." She pointed to a constellation on her starmap. "Name this." Draco glanced at Hermione. His cool gaze landed on her face, where he realized that she had amazingly deep brown eyes. He felt a falling sensation as he looked into her eyes and felt that he could stare into them forever.

'Wait a minute! What are you doing? This is goody-two-shoes _Granger_ we're talking about here. There's nothing special about her- except her large teeth. Actually, her teeth don't look so large anymore- they look…pretty. No, STOP! Stop thinking about these things!' Draco commanded himself. He forced his gaze off Hermione's face and back onto his own starmap. He looked at it for awhile but came up with no answer.

"Hah! Can't name it, can you?" Hermione said victoriously. She turned around abruptly and focussed on Professor Sinistra again. Draco's sight now came back into focus as he studied the star map. He looked at the constellation Hermione had pointed out. It was a rather simple one that he could name- Canis Majoris- it was just that when he looked at it, the stars kept on rearranging themselves into the shape of Hermione's face. 

For the rest of the class, Draco found himself listening to Hermione's melodious voice. The bell finally rang and Draco crammed his books and starmap into his bag. He suddenly realized that he had crumpled up his starmap. He hesitated for a few seconds before pulling it out of his bag and smoothing it out. As he did so, he realized that he had fallen for Hermione- big time.

***

"The star Ahienda is located in the Upper Traxian Galaxy which is approximately 1002.46 light years away from earth," Hermione said. 

"Very good, Hermione. Ten points to Gryfinndor," Professor Sinistra responded. Draco let out a loud groan. Hermione frowned. True, this was one of their later lessons, but that was no reason to act like that. Besides, these things were important.

"Who cares about some star located billions of miles away. It doesn't have any effect over us. Besides, I could have named it if I wanted to," Draco sneered at Hermione. She turned around and glared at him. There was no one to defend her now- none of Harry's witty comments or Ron's threats as Harry had sunk into a stupor and Ron was fast asleep at his desk. She had to say something quick.

'Think Hermione, think!' she urged herself.

"Oh really?" Hermione hissed. "Let's see it, then." She pointed to a constellation on her starmap. "Name this." She could have smacked herself. What a lame comeback- so like her. Draco glanced at her. His cool gaze landed on her face and Hermione began to feel slightly nervous. 

'Why isn't he looking away? Is there something on my face? In between my teeth?' Hermione commenced to touch her face self-consciously and ran her tongue over her teeth. There was nothing there. She looked at Draco and was about to ask what exactly he was staring at when she noticed something weird- he seemed to radiate with a sense of masculinity that she had never noticed in Harry or Ron, perhaps because she had always seem them just a friends. In fact, wasn't that the reason she had refused to date Ron? She was lucky to still have him as a friend, but Draco…he was something else. Just the sight of him made her heart beat a little faster. She glanced back down at her own map for awhile and hoped that these feelings would pass. When she looked back up, Draco was concentrating on his own starmap- to her relief. He had been staring at it for a while, but came up with no answer.

"Hah! Can't name it, can you?" Hermione said victoriously. 

'Stupid! Why couldn't I have said something more interesting…more sophisticated?' She turned around abruptly so Draco wouldn't notice the flush that was appearing on her cheeks. She answered a few more of Professor Sinistra's questions before she felt more normal. When the bell finally rang, she shook Ron and Harry awake and dragged them back down to the Gryfinndor common room, as far away from Draco as she could possibly manage…although she wasn't sure that was what she wanted. He seemed to have some kind of polarity that attracted her to him. She found it a bit scary, but somehow intriguing as well. She lay in bed thinking about this for awhile and had begun to fall asleep when she was jolted awake with a sudden realization- she had fallen for Draco in a big way.

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Author's Note: Alright, REVIEW and tell me what you think. It was a bit corny and sappy I know, but hey- it's fluff! :D The second chapter should be out by next week if my teachers don't kill me with tests and projects and homework. Please be so kind as to shine a light through my otherwise awful, busy, homework-filled days by REVIEWING!!! Please and Thanks! :)


	2. Crashing and Fistfights

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Disclaimer: I do not own any of JK Rowling's characters. I wouldn't mind owning Draco, but I don't! :P hehehehe! :D

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Author's Notes: I'm not really sure if I'm going to do the back and forth thing in this chapter…I think I'll only do this one from Hermione's point of view! It depends on what happens and my mood. And in case you're interested to know, I was right… there is an assassination plan…between teachers and students. Their weapon? HOMEWORK! AHHHHH…I have 3 major projects over the holidays, 2 tests, homework, AND exams are a month away…. :'( however, I'm taking the time to write this because I got so many nice nice reviews (THANKS LOTS) so plz take the time to review! :)

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Under the Stars

Chapter 2: Crashing and Fistfights

Hermione awoke that morning feeling tired and groggy. She was thankful that it was Saturday as she had stayed up all night, trying to sort out her feelings for Draco, when at 4am, she finally concluded that this was just a stage she was going through and would soon pass. Besides, he _was_ an insufferable Malfoy- it wasn't like he harboured any feelings for her, and nothing could possibly happen between them. With that in mind, she washed up and got dressed, although she took a little bit more time doing her hair than usual. She even dabbed on a tiny bit of perfume, reasoning that she could look and smell pretty without meaning that she was trying to attract someone. She hitched her bag over her shoulder and headed down to the Great Hall for breakfast.

She walked through the doors of the Great Hall and slowed down immediately. She glared at the Gryfinndor table where Ron and Lavender were sitting side by side. Ron was saying something- probably telling a joke, by the way Lavender was laughing- and Lavender was…_stroking his arm?!?_ Hermione felt her face burn when she realized that Ron's hand was on top of Lavender's free hand. Hermione's mind spun. It wasn't as though she had feelings for Ron- it was just that he had asked her out less than two weeks ago, and had seemed crushed when she rejected him. Now, he was flirting his head off with Lavender, who seemed to be flirting right back. It hurt her that he had gotten over her so quickly. When Ron leaned in towards Lavender, Hermione drew in a sharp breath. He gave Lavender a playful peck on the cheek, but Lavender grabbed his head and gave him a full kiss in front of everyone in the Great Hall. Fred and George began hooting and whooping, and Ron didn't seem to mind at all. Hermione couldn't stand it. Her eyes filled with tears as she turned around and ran out of the Great Hall. 

Her vision was blurred and she couldn't see in front of her. She charged down the halls only to go crashing into someone. With a cry, she dropped her bag and all its contents and began to fall backwards. The person she ran into grabbed her shoulders and hoisted her upright before she hit the ground. The sudden shift of gravity caused her to pitch forwards, into the person's arms. She stayed in that position for a moment, relishing the relative comfort and calm of the moment. When she composed herself, subtly wiping her tears with her sleeve, she stepped backwards and looked up.

"D-dra…I mean, Malfoy?" Hermione faltered.

"That's my name, don't wear it out," he joked lightly. He regarded her tearstained face. "What's wrong, Granger?" he asked indifferently as he picked up the contents that had spilled from her bag.

'He's actually being kind to me. Maybe he isn't all that bad. Should I tell him what actually happened? No, of course not! I can hardly believe I just considered that!'

"N-nothing," she lied. She hurriedly snatched the rest of the items off of the floor and dumped them into her bag. "Sorry for running into you like that, and, um…thanks." She grabbed her bag and scurried back down the hall, and turned into the library. 

'Why do I have to act so nervous around him? Stupid hormones!'

Hermione dumped her bag onto the table in the library earning a glare from Madame Pince, the librarian. She began to pull books off of the shelf to do research for a major Astronomy project. Professor Sinistra hadn't yet assigned it, but Hermione figured that she might was well get a head start on it. After leafing through several books and filling her parchment with notes, she decided to go back to the common room. It wasnearly lunchtime, and she wanted to drop off her books before the trip to Hogsmeade that afternoon. She checked out the books and put them in her bag, but she unhappily noticed that she was missing her astronomy textbook. 

'Darn! It must have fallen out of my bag when I ran into Drac…Malfoy.' Hermione checked the entire area of the hall, but she could not find her book. 'He must have taken it with him! Darn, darn, darn!' she cursed (in her mind).

She trudged back up the steps to the common room. With disgust, she noticed that Ron and Lavender were already there, and Lavender was making a big fuss over Ron. She suddenly realized why that was so and ran over to Ron, who was sporting a black eye.

"Ron! What happened? Who did that to you?" Hermione cried.

"It was that stupid Malfoy! I was just walking in the halls, and for no good reason he came over and punched me. That prat! I'm going to get him for this," Ron swore.

'This is so strange. Did Draco do that because he knew that Ron was the one who upset me?' Without even realizing it, Hermione had begun to use Draco's first name. This definitely contradicted one of her first thoughts of the morning- that nothing could ever happen between herself and Draco.

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(A/N: remember how I said that I might not do Draco's point of view? Well I lied! Here it is! :D)

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Draco was climbing the steps of a tall tower. He rounded a corner, and there stood a beautiful girl, but the features of her face were blurred. He walked toward to her and her eyes sparkled. He reached out and held her arms, but she began to float away. She pulled him with her, and soon they were floating amid the stars…

Draco awoke happily that morning. He had had dreams of a certain somebody, but he couldn't remember her face or who she was. He luxuriated in his warm bed for awhile, and since sleep did not return to claim him, he decided to get up. He glanced at his wristwatch and swore. It was 10am, and breakfast would soon stop being served. He could no longer sneak into the kitchens for food like he had been doing for the past four years because Dobby was now an important member of the kitchen staff and wasn't particularly fond of him. So, he hurriedly threw on his clothes and robe and strode out of his room. He left through the portrait in the Slytherin common room and rushed in the direction of the Great Hall.

He slowed down as approached the Great Hall as he noticed a figure come hurtling through the doors. He puzzled over who it was and finally realized that it was Hermione. Suddenly, his dream flooded back to him, and he realized that it was her that he had been dreaming about. 

'Why is Hermione so upset? If anybody hurt her, so help me…' His thought trailed off as he leapt forward with the speed and strength born from years of Quidditch training and caught her. With a cry, she dropped her bag and all its contents and began to fall backwards. Draco grabbed her shoulders and pulled her upright, but the forward motion pulled her right into his arms. He held her for a moment, not wanting to let go. He took a deep breath to try to will himself to release her from his grip, but inhaled a spicy cinnamon scent that surrounded her, causing his mind to spin. He felt her moving away from him, so he let her go. He watched her wipe her tears and look up. 

"D-dra…I mean, Malfoy?" Hermione faltered.

'Why couldn't she use my first name?' he pondered sadly. "That's my name, don't wear it out," he joked lightly. He regarded her tearstained face. "What's wrong, Granger?" he asked indifferently as he picked up the contents that had spilled from her bag. 'Who hurt you like this? What did they do?' he added in his mind.

"N-nothing," Hermione replied. She grabbed her bag from Draco's arms and shoved the rest of her things back into it. "Sorry for running into you like that, and, um…thanks." She scurried back down the hall, and turned into the library. 

Draco shook his head sadly. She acted so weird around him, and it was no surprise as they had been enemies for years now. Nothing would ever happen between them, he realized dejectedly. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted something lying against the wall. He bent over and picked it up. 

'This is Hermione's astrology textbook. Maybe I can use this to talk to her a little more,' he thought. He pocketed the book and continued on his way to the Great Hall. 

The second he walked through the doors, Pansy latched on to him. He groaned.

"Draco, darling! You'll never believe what you missed this morning. It was hilarious, really. Ron and Lavender were snogging in the middle of breakfast…" she trailed off and eyed Draco hopefully.

"So?" Draco asked uncomfortably.

"Well, Hermione came into the Great Hall and then when she saw them kissing, she ran away. She's probably crying out her little mudblood heart as we speak," Pansy laughed. 

"Yeah, that's really hilarious," Draco said dully as he forced a laugh. He rudely shook off Pansy and took a seat at a table. 

After breakfast, Draco was in an extremely foul mood. It wasn't that he _really_ minded the fact that Hermione didn't like him, it was that Ron had the nerve to treat her like that. This thought simmered within his mind until he headed back to his common room to get ready for the trip to Hogsmeade. He walked out of the Great Hall and spotted Ron and Lavender immediately. He couldn't stop himself. He strode over to Ron, let his fist fly, and continued on his way to his common room, leaving behind a wounded Ron, and a shrieking Lavender. 

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Author's Note: Ok! I'm sorry that was the gushiest chapter I've ever written! I guess I'm not in a very romantic mood cuz I've been coughing up phlegm all day cuz I'm sick with the flu. (I once knew a bird named Enza, I opened the window and in flew Enza! LOL!!! Ahh…that's hilarious! (you have to say the last three words together)) Please review, and no flames s'il vous plait!


	3. A Bumpy Ride

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Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, anything Warner Brothers created, or anything J. K. Rowling created.

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Author's Note: Ahh…sweet sweet Christmas vacation! :D Here's a little fluffy chapter for your tastes, or at least, I hope that it matches your taste! :) plz REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!!!

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Under the Stars

Chapter 3: A Bumpy Ride

Draco stared gloomily out the window from his carriage, waiting for it to leave for Hogsmeade. It was a nice day outside, a beautiful day, but he was stuck with two oafs instead of the girl of his dreams. The thought passed his mind and caused him to smile, because she was literally the girl of his dreams. He sighed. She was such an intelligent conversationalist, and had looks to match her mind. He glanced over at his companions. What was it they were talking about? Some kind of wart on Goyle's finger. Ugh.

"Hey boss, what do you think I should do about this wart? Curse it chop it off?" Goyle asked. Draco groaned and pushed Goyle's arm away as he held up his finger to show off his wart.

"If you cursed it, you'd probably end up setting fire to your entire arm. Why don't you just go see Madame Pomfrey and have her fix it for you? Crabbe, you go with him." The two gorillas blundered out of the coach in a hurry to reach the castle and find Madame Pomfrey. Draco smiled. The day was looking up. So far, he had already held Hermione, given Weasley a black eye, and sent away those two hulking goons so he could spend the day amusing himself on his own. He looked out his window again. The coach Hermione was in was pulling away. He frowned. She was sitting next to Weasley, and was fussing over his eye. He winced as he flexed his sore hand. There was no one to do that over him. 

'Well…as long as Hermione's happy,' he reasoned. His own coach sped off. Within an hour, all the Hogwarts students had reached Hogsmeade. Draco grinned. He strolled over to the sweet shop and began to fill his baskets with candy. Sure, he still had plenty of sweets back at the castle because his mother sent him a package every week, but this sort of food was always good to eat. As he left Honeydukes, he noticed Ron and Hermione walking over to Zonko's arguing every step of the way. Harry was slightly behind them, and Lavender was trailing behind them all, whining, and throwing in a limp every so often. He decided to ignore them and began window-shopping instead. Too bad the stores here weren't as interesting as Knocturn Alley's stores. There, you could expect to find some weird, helpful objects, even if they were dark items. 

All of a sudden, something caught his eye. He walked over to the window of a jewelry shop. A silver necklace with a tiny pendant was in the display case. The charm was a circle of silver with a miniature star-shaped gem in the centre of it. The necklace was advertised to be made of pieces from the star, Sirius. The second he saw it, he thought of Hermione. He ran into the store.

"How much for the necklace in the window?" he asked the saleswoman. 

"Oh, that's a very special necklace. It's made of pieces of the brightest star in the sky, so it glows when it's dark. There's also a compass on the back of it."

"How much?" Draco repeated.

"It's worth 20 galleons, but I'm willing to let it go for 15." Draco hurriedly threw the money on the table. He put the box containing the necklace into his robe pocket and walked out of the store, moneybags considerably lighter. He walked past the Shrieking Shack and into the Quality Quidditch Supplies store to check out the newest items. As he entered the store, he walked into someone.

"Oh, sorry," they grunted. Draco looked up, right into the eyes of Harry Potter. He steeled himself as he waited for the onslaught of fists that would probably come. Instead Harry just sneered, "oh, it's you. You're lucky that Hermione managed to convince Ron not to throw a firecracker into one of our poisons we're making in Potions next week, but I'd watch my back when she's not around," and walked out of the store, shoving into Draco's shoulder as he did. Draco was slightly shaken, not from the death threat- he was used to those- but from the fact that Hermione stood up for him. 

'Is it possible that Hermione actually likes me?" He grinned and hummed as he strolled up and down the aisles in the store. It was getting dark and cold now, so he decided to head over to the Three Broomsticks for a butterbeer to warm him up. He sauntered through the door and immediately realized that the only somewhat empty table was a booth at the far end of the room, where a solitary figure was sitting, downing a huge glass of butterbeer. He headed in that direction. He grinned when he noticed who it was and jogged over to the table.

'Wait a minute- don't run. You'll look too eager.' He immediately checked himself and ambled over to where Hermione was sitting. 

"Hey there, stranger. Anyone sitting here? The rest of the booths are full," he said, gesturing to the other tables.

"Oh, hello Draco. No one's sitting there. Go ahead and have a seat." Draco's smile grew even broader. She had used his first name. The waitress came over to the table. Draco ordered a mug of butterbeer and some chicken cutlets for dinner. Hermione ordered the same.

"Why all the butterbeer? Are you okay?" Draco asked.

"I suppose. I got ditched, and drowning my sorrows in butterbeer helps," Hermione replied. Draco's eyes grew wide. He hadn't expected a real answer to his question, but he was sure glad that he had gotten one.

"You can go back to Hogwarts with me in my carriage," Draco offered. "That is- if you want to, of course," he added hastily. Hermione looked up with surprise and happiness written over her face. 

"Thanks! That would be great. You see, Ron, Harry, Lavender and I split up earlier so Ron and Lavender could go see a movie together. Harry was supposed to tell me where we were meeting afterwards, but he forgot about meeting Cho and rushed off and forgot to tell me. Why aren't you with Crabbe and Goyle?"

"Those two goons? They never came to Hogsmeade. They stayed at the castle because of some growth on Goyle's hand." Hermione made a face. 

'She looks so cute like that,' Draco thought. The food had arrived, so they were silent for awhile, munching on their dinner. 

"So, what'd you get?" Draco inquired, pointing at Hermione's bags.

"Not much. I was missing my Astronomy textbook, so I bought myself another one, only they didn't have the right book, so I had to get the abridged version." She made another face, and Draco's heart thumped.

"Why didn't you ask me about it? I found your old textbook, but I left it back at the castle. I'll give it to you in Potions Monday, if you want." 

"Thanks," Hermione smiled. Draco's heart made another queer thump. They finished off the meal, split the bill (Hermione insisted on paying for her own meal) and walked outside to where the carriages were waiting. They climbed into the carriage and it sped off, back towards the castle.

"What were you doing with your textbook, anyway?"

"There's an Astronomy project being assigned next class, remember? I wanted to get a head start." Draco vaguely remembered Professor Sinistra droning on about some sort of constellation something-or-other. 

"That's right. So which constellation are you doing?" 

"I'm not sure. I guess I'll let my partner decide that, but I was sort of hoping that I could do Canis Majoris." Draco grinned.

"I remember that one." He pulled open the door of the carriage. 

"Draco, what are you doing? The road is full of bumps! We'll get thrown out!" Hermione screeched. He just smiled and pointed at the night sky. 

"Canis Majoris. I can name it without my starmap now." Hermione relaxed and smiled as Draco continued. "It contains Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky." He looked at Hermione out of the corner of his eye. 'She's beautiful…' "…just like you're the brightest and most beautiful woman in the carriage right now." Draco and Hermione began to blush, but neither could see it in the dark carriage. 

"Oh, Draco…"

'This is it. It's now or never.' Draco placed his hands over Hermione's and leaned in towards her. She shut her eyes and leaned towards Draco as well. Their lips were inches apart, centimetres, millimetres….

**_BANG_**

The carriage went over a particularly large bump in the road. Hermione and Draco immediately broke apart, each flushing a deep shade of crimson. They sat on opposite sides of the carriage for the rest of the trip, staring out the windows. All the while, Draco silently cursed the bumps on the road.

***

Hermione sat next to Harry, Ron and Lavender in the carriage. It was a beautiful day out, but Hermione was stuck with Harry and a lovey dovey couple…but at least they weren't so lovey dovey at the moment. Ron was still sulking over the shiner Draco delivered to him that morning. Him and Harry were planning methods of revenge to take on Draco, and Hermione wasn't all to sure that they amused her. With a few whispered instructions to Lavender, Hermione managed to have one of the conspirators distracted. With only himself left, Harry distracted himself with Quidditch. Task completed. Hermione smiled and sat back to enjoy for the rest of the trip to Hogsmeade.

All was well until they left the carriage. The four went to the Owl Post so Harry could send some of Fred and George's 'specially treated' sugar bonbons to Dudley. Harry wanted to see if he could give the owl specific instructions to leave it on Dudley's bedroom window rather than to drop it off with the rest of the mail. This took quite a while. Finally, the owl flew away, and the four headed to Zonko's at Ron's command. Apparently, he was still bent on getting revenge on Draco in some way, and intended to do it exploding something of his. Harry suggested that a No-Heat Wet-Start Filibuster Firework in next week's potions class ought to do it. Ron agreed. Hermione didn't.

"That's dangerous! You know we're making poisons next week!"

"Good. Then we'll see how Snape reacts when his favourite student dies while Snape's trying to target us Gryfinndors, especially Harry."

"But if you explode some of the poisons, the whole class is going to get it, not just Draco. Besides, we work only two tables away from them!"

"Fine," Ron agreed. "We won't throw a firework into his potion next week…we'll do it the week after when we're working with dragon dung!" Hermione was getting exasperated. It didn't help matters that Lavender was trailing behind them, whining about how they had to walk all over Hogsmeade and how her feet hurt. 

'How can Ron stand her? I bet she'll end up dragging him all over Hogsmeade shopping after they go on their date.' "Ron…" Hermione began, her voice dangerously low.

"What? It's perfect, don't you agree, Harry?"

"Yeah, dragon dung all over Malfoy's front." Ron and Harry burst out laughing. Lavender collapsed on a nearby bench. Everyone walked back to her. 

"Ron, Harry, if you guys do ANYTHING to him, I'll never speak to you again!" Hermione yelled shrilly. Harry looked at her strangely. "I mean…you could get in trouble if you're caught, and then where would you be?" she added lamely.

"I guess you're right, 'Mione. If we're the ones who are expelled, then he'll get the last laugh. We'll have to plan this carefully," Ron said.

"You mean you're not going to Zonko's?" Lavender asked hopefully.

"Not right now," Ron replied.

"Great! I saw some really cute boutiques that we passed by, and I thought maybe we could get in some shopping before we watch that movie. And after the movie, we could do a bit more shopping. I'm in serious need of some new clothes. Can you believe that I don't have any trendy winter robes yet, and it's December?"

"But what about those sweaters and boots and jackets you were wearing last week?" Ron asked, bewildered. 

"I said _trendy_, Ron. Chic! In vogue! Come on, I'll show you. Maybe we can get you some new clothes too." Lavender dragged Ron away. Harry and Hermione tagged after them. The four flitted from store to store, with Lavender leading the way. Harry and Ron talked while Lavender forced clothes on Hermione. Finally, Lavender noticed the time from the clock tower in the centre of Hogsmeade and decided that it was time for her and Ron to head over to the theatre. 

"Time to go, dear," she said. Ron blushed.

"Err...right after you, um…sweetums."

"Wait, Ron, where are we meeting?" Hermione called after them.

"Ask Harry," Ron called and turned into the theatre. 

"Harry?"

"Right! We're meeting at 4 at-" he suddenly glanced at the time. "Shoot! I forgot I was supposed to meet Cho at one! She's going to kill me!!" He raced away.

"Wait, Harry! Where are we going to meet?" Hermione shouted. Harry was already gone. "Great, I got ditched. Oh well, at least I don't have to keep on trying on all those outrageous clothes." Hermione wandered down the streets and finally went into Flourish and Blotts. Here, she bought a book for light reading and also purchased an abridged version of her Astronomy textbook, as she unhappily realized that they were out of the normal version. She smiled as she remembered running into Draco that morning. 

By now, it was dark and cold, so Hermione went into the Three Broomsticks, hungry and alone. She got into a booth at the back and commenced in drowning her sorrows in butterbeer. The tables around her began filling up, but she took no notice as she read the novel. She finished reading quickly, and had just put it away when someone near her spoke.

"Hey there, stranger. Anyone sitting here? The rest of the booths are full," he said, gesturing to the other tables. Hermione looked up and saw Draco smiling at her. Her heart flip flopped as she responded.

"Oh, hello Draco. No one's sitting there. Go ahead and have a seat." His smile grew even broader. He seated himself, and the waitress came over to the table. Draco ordered a mug of butterbeer and some chicken cutlets for dinner. Hermione ordered the same.

"Why all the butterbeer? Are you okay?" Draco asked. Hermione couldn't help but notice how cute he looked when he was concerned. She wasn't feeling particularly sorry for herself, so she decided to divulge her information.

"I suppose. I got ditched, and drowning my sorrows in butterbeer helps," Hermione replied. 

"You can go back to Hogwarts with me in my carriage," Draco offered. "That is- if you want to, of course," he added hastily. Hermione looked up with surprise and happiness written over her face. 

'That's so kind of him. Is it possible that he likes me too? He's actually acting civil to me.' "Thanks! That would be great. You see, Ron, Harry, Lavender and I split up earlier so Ron and Lavender could go see a movie together. Harry was supposed to tell me where we were meeting afterwards, but he forgot about meeting Cho and rushed off and forgot to tell me. Why aren't you with Crabbe and Goyle?"

"Those two goons? They never came to Hogsmeade. They stayed at the castle because of some growth on Goyle's hand." Hermione made a face. 

'Ugh. He's talking about warts or something like that. Very romantic," she thought sarcastically. The food had arrived, so they were silent for awhile, eating their dinner.

"So, what'd you get?" Draco inquired, pointing at Hermione's bags.

"Not much. I was missing my Astronomy textbook, so I bought myself another one, only they didn't have the right book, so I had to get the abridged version." She made another face.

"Why didn't you ask me about it? I found your old textbook, but I left it back at the castle. I'll give it to you in Potions Monday, if you want." 

"Thanks," Hermione smiled. They finished off the meal, split the bill, and walked outside to where the carriages were waiting. They climbed into the carriage and it sped off, back towards the castle.

"What were you doing with your textbook, anyway?"

"There's an Astronomy project being assigned next class, remember? I wanted to get a head start." 

"That's right. So which constellation are you doing?" 

"I'm not sure. I guess I'll let my partner decide that, but I was sort of hoping that I could do Canis Majoris." 

"I remember that one." He pulled open the door of the carriage. 

'Is he crazy? What is he doing? Trying to get us all killed?!?' "Draco, what are you doing? The road is full of bumps! We'll get thrown out!" Hermione screeched. He just smiled and pointed at the night sky. 

"Canis Majoris. I can name it without my starmap now." Hermione relaxed and smiled as Draco continued. "It contains Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky." 

'Someone's been doing his homework.' Hermione was just about to comment on this when Draco added, "…just like you're the brightest and most beautiful woman in the carriage right now." Draco and Hermione began to blush, but neither could see it in the dark carriage. 

"Oh, Draco…" Hermione's heart began pounding. 'This is so romantic,' she thought. Draco placed his hands over Hermione's and leaned in towards her. She shut her eyes and leaned towards Draco as well. Their lips were inches apart, centimetres, millimetres….

**_BANG_**

The carriage went over a particularly large bump in the road. Hermione and Draco immediately broke apart, each flushing a deep shade of crimson. They sat on opposite sides of the carriage for the rest of the trip, staring out the windows. All the while, Hermione silently cursed the bumps on the road.

*****

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Author's Note: There! That's my longest chapter ever out of all the stories I've written. Enough action for you (jd)? Lol! Well plz plz review so I'll know that my work is appreciated. My thanks go to those who reviewed my previous chapters! Hmm… I havn't got much more to say now, except REVIEW!!!


	4. Ron's Revenge

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Disclaimer: I do not own anything J. K. Rowling or Warner Bros. created. Happy? Yes? Good, me too! ;)

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Author's Note: Ahhh!!! I'm sorry I haven't updated for so long, but last weekend was crazy for me! I don't know when I'll find the time to update again for awhile cuz I got exams coming up in 2 weeks, and I have a few projects and test the week after exams finish, so I'll try and update soon! Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed! You really made my day! :D Btw, I once again do not know if I will do this story from both Draco and Hermione's point of view because you were right, Katie Black, I got a little lazy last chapter (sorry), and I don't know how much different I can make this. We'll see. On with the story!

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Under the Stars

Chapter 4: Ron's Revenge

"Bell passes to Spinnet, Spinnet dodges a bludger…WHOA close shave from another bludger sent her way from Beater Rolden of Slytherin…come on Alicia…come on… YES!! Gryfinndor scores increasing the score to 40 - 10!" Lee Jordan announced gleefully.

Up in the air, Draco cursed. The game just began a quarter of an hour ago, and already Gryfinndor had pulled ahead with an early lead. He anxiously scanned the ground looking for a hint of gold, but none could be seen. 

'It's all those red heads distracting me,' Draco thought. He was referring to not only the Weasley twins, but also Ron, who had made the team that year. Draco had been in a foul mood that entire week. Last Saturday in the carriage made him feel great, as if he didn't need a broom to fly, and like he could float without eating Fizzing Whizbees. Then came the bumps. The next day in Potions when he went to return Hermione's astronomy textbook, she was so embarrassed that she wouldn't even look at him and refused to take the book. Then of course, Ron and Harry leapt to her defense. 

*Flashback*

_"Leave her alone, Malfoy. Don't try to give out any more of Voldemort's old things. We know you hate muggles and muggleborns!" Harry shouted. The entire class gasped at the mention of Voldemort._

"Yeah, back off Malfoy. Why don't you go-" Ron described something that would have made his mother's ears shrivel and curl up (A/N: lets try to keep this PG, folks!) _and the Gryfinndor side of the class broke out into laughter. With that, all three parties whipped out their wands and cried the first curse that came to mind. Hexes flew around the room, ricocheting off the dungeon walls. Ron's curse hit Pansy Parkinson in the face, causing her entire head to turn into a neon pink and lime green balloon. Draco's curse bounced off Neville's cauldron and hit Hermione dead on. When her arms began turning into tree limbs, he wanted to sink into the floor, which is what he seemed to be doing as Harry's 'Jelly Body' curse hit his intended victim. Just then, Snape entered the room. He performed the counter curse on Draco and Pansy and ordered Parvati to take Hermione up to the hospital wing, as she seemed to have taken root in the stone floor. _

"Oy Malfoy! Keep your head in the game!" Marcus Flint shouted. Draco nodded and shook his head to try to clear his thoughts. Suddenly, he felt a rush of wind speed past him. He looked down and noticed Harry leaning over flat on his broom, racing towards a spot on the pitch. Draco could have kicked himself for not paying attention and hurriedly flew after Harry. They somehow managed to draw even and hurtled in a dive towards the ground. Harry quickly pulled out of his dive and shot upward. Alas, Draco's broom did not have the superior braking system of the Firebolt and could not stop fast enough and crashed into the ground. Luckily, it had rained the day before, and other than a skinned knee and a couple of bruises, he was okay. 

Madame Hooch resumed the game, and soon, the hunt for the Snitch was on yet again. Draco surveyed the ground. This time, several feet below him, he saw Harry flying at top speed toward the goalposts on the Gryfinndor side of the pitch. Draco didn't waste any time and tore after him, however, he stayed cautious of the Wronski Feint so he wouldn't crash into the ground this time. However, he was so intent on following Harry that he barely noticed a flash of red streaking towards him. 

**_WHAM_**

Something hit his broom, causing it to roll around and swerve in mid air. Draco held on for dear life as his stomach gave a lurch. The broom finally stopped moving and the nausea left him. He rose above the players so he could see anything coming at him, and searched for the Snitch. He continued to fly around, but something felt a little bit off. 

An acrid scent filled his nose. 'What's that weird smell?' Draco wondered, sniffing the air. 'Smoke!?' He turned around and saw that whoever had hit him had also concealed a deck of Ultra Exploding Snap cards into his broom. He reached hurriedly for his wand to put out the fire, but it was too late. A sound like thunder filled the air as the pack exploded. Draco plummeted hundreds of feet from the air as his broom snapped into tiny twigs and fell around him. With a sickening thud, he landed on the ground with his arm and leg sticking out at funny angles. His stomach heaved, and this time, he couldn't keep it down. The pain and dizziness overwhelmed him and he blacked out into merciful darkness.

*

(A/N: ok, here's how I decided to do it. One asterisk (see line above) means that it's still from the same person's point of view, but it's just a different scene. 5 asterisks means it's a POV change, and 3 asterisks means that it's in third person, but more from Draco's POV. I hope that's not too confusing.)

"Draco? Draco?" Draco stirred and opened his eyes. His vision swam, but he tried to focus on the person talking to him.

'What's this? A voice of an angel? Am I in heaven?' Draco wondered.

"Here. Drink this potion, it'll help wake you up." Whoever was speaking helped Draco into a sitting position and tipped a goblet of potion down his throat. 

'The touch of an angel,' Draco thought, barely conscious. Suddenly, the potion began to burn a bit and his vision came into focus.

"Madame Pomfrey?!?" Draco cried when he saw her leaning right him front of him. He was so shocked that by natural reflexes, he shoved her back and squirmed away. It suddenly occurred to him how old and fragile she actually was, and that what he just did probably wasn't a very smart move. Luckily, he was still so weak from his fall that she barely moved when he pushed her away, and his 'squirms' were no more than a tiny movement of feet. 

"Oh stop fidgeting. Finish up your potion and I'll be back with dinner in an hour. Hermione, help him," Madame Pomfrey ordered. She turned and walked away.

*****

Hermione awoke to the chattering of her roommates. They were excited and up early because today was not only the start of Quidditch, but also the start of the new Gryfinndor cheerleading squad compiled of Lavender Brown, Parvati Patil, Elaine Fosney (a 6th year), and several younger girls. They had appealed to Professor McGonagall to allow them to wear skirts and uniforms while cheerleading, but she had insisted that they wear robes. Therefore Lavender got to go on another shopping spree to find the shortest red and gold robes made with a little flounce for the skirts. Needless to say, she returned with 7 cheerleading robes and a dozen other items of clothing for herself.

Hermione got out of bed, dressed, and raced down to the common room where Harry and Ron were waiting for her. Together, they walked down to the Great Hall for a hearty breakfast before the game began.

"So," Harry asked, swallowing his scrambled eggs, "you feeling nervous Ron? There's no need to be, you know. You beat out 17 other people when trying out for the Keeper position. You'll be fine." Ron just nodded and gulped. He finished off his pumpkin juice in one long swig. 

"Either way, I wouldn't miss this game for anything!" he declared.

"Of course, Ron. It's your first Quidditch game in Hogwarts," Hermione said.

"…Right…my…first game," Ron agreed slowly with a crooked grin. He didn't fool Hermione for a second- she could spot that evil gleam in his eye faster than you could say 'supercalifragilisticexpialidocious'.

"What are you up to Ron?" He just ducked his head. "Harry?" she asked, turning to face Harry. He coughed and cleared his throat. 

"Er- sorry, Hermione. We'd love to stay and chat, but we…ah…have to get dressed now and…um…go over some strategy. Bye!" With that, Ron and Harry pushed out their chairs and practically ran out of the Great Hall.

"Boys!" Hermione muttered, throwing up her arms in frustration.

*

"It's a beautiful day for the first Quidditch match of the season! For those of you who were worrying about the rain yesterday, there's no need! Today we'll have the great rivals Gryfinndor versus Slytherin. Gryfinndor has some new talent this year- Ron Weasley will be playing the Keeper position, and 3rd year Alexis Atkinson will be playing Chaser as Oliver Wood and Angelina Johnson have graduated. The great Harry Potter has also become captain of the team. Meanwhile, Slytherin also has some new additions to the team- a couple of bigger, younger, no-talent Slytherins who Gryfinndor should have no trouble beating!"

"Jordan!"

"Fine, fine sorry professor! Well, they have a new Chaser…"

Hermione tuned out the commentary and began scanning the pitch to see if she could spot Ron and Harry. Ron was no problem. His red hair made him stick out like a sore thumb. Harry, however, was harder to spot, probably because he was always on the move, giving other players tips. Hermione used her omioculars to scan the other side of the pitch. She spotted Draco and immediately felt slightly sad. He had been avoiding her for the past week. He was probably too embarrassed after what had happened in the coach. She certainly was. She tried to talk to him several times afterward but got tongue-tied before she even managed to reach him. When he approached her to return her book, she couldn't look at him and only shook her head. Little did she know that would cause her to end up as a tree, but then again things in a magic school were always unpredictable.

**_TWEET_**

With a blast of the whistle, the game began. All 12 players rose into the air (with the Keepers already in their positions). Gryffindor grabbed an early lead to start the game. Katie Bell scored a pair of goals to bring the score to 20 - 0. Then, Slytherin's Adrian Pucey closed the gap by scoring on a disappointed Ron. Alicia Spinnet followed that by scoring on the Slytherin Keeper and the new Chaser Alexis scored her own goal after that. From up above, Harry went into a breathtaking spiral towards the ground, followed closely by Draco. The crowd gasped. Up in the stands, Hermione held her breath as they raced towards the ground at top speed. Suddenly, Harry pulled out of the spiral and shot straight upwards, but Draco, unable to stop, crashed into the ground. 

'Oh my gosh!' Hermione screamed in her mind. In a second, she was up on her seat straining to see if he was hurt. Within a minute, he was up and flying again, seemingly unhurt. She breathed again. 

"Boy! You must have been really excited about that Wronski Feint, huh, Hermione?" Ginny asked. Hermione turned to the young girl sitting next to her who had been so disappointed when Hermione turned down Ron.

"That's right…he always has wanted to try that move," Hermione said as she seated herself.

They continued watching the game. Several Chasers from either side scored numerous goals, bringing the score to 70 - 70. 

"Bloody hell! Sh-" Lee Jordan shouted after the Slytherins tied the game. Professor McGonagall attempted to yank the microphone out of his hand. "Sorry professor, it won't happen again. Hey! Looks like Potter has spotted something! Or will he pull off another magnificent Wronski Feint again?"

Harry was speeding over to the Gryfinndor goalposts, Draco trailing him. Hermione stared out from her omnioculars. 

'What is Ron doing? He shouldn't be leaving the goalposts like that…and he's flying straight at Draco.' The scene from breakfast rapidly replayed in her head and she felt her stomach sinking. She suddenly shrieked as she saw Draco being knocked off course. His Nimbus 2001 tumbled around in mid-air, but finally stopped. Somehow, he hadn't fallen off of his broom. 

"Don't worry, Hermione. Ron isn't hurt," Ginny assured her. Hermione shook her head and focussed on the game.

"Penalty to Gryfinndor for the attack on the Seeker!" Adrian Pucey took the penalty shot and Ron pulled off an amazing save. The game resumed and Hermione watched Draco drifting high above the pitch, watching for any signs of the Snitch, bludgers, and people. 

All at once, the sound of an explosion filled the air. Hermione watched in horror as Draco fell hundreds of feet down to the pitch below, the remnants of his broomstick falling around him, seemingly in slow motion. 

'Oh God no!!!!!!' When he landed, time sped up again, and Hermione could hear the crowd around her.

"Hermione! Hermione! Are you okay?" Ginny was asking frantically. Hermione realized that she was screaming. She shut her mouth sheepishly. "Come on. The game will be called off. Let's go back to the common room." Hermione allowed Ginny to lead her away, all the while still frantically looking at the pitch where Draco had yet to get up.

*

Hermione looked up and down the hall and rushed into the room, shutting the door gently behind her.

'Why am I doing this? I don't know what Harry or Ron would ever do if they caught me here…but then again, why shouldn't I be here?' With those thoughts in mind, Hermione turned to face the room. She walked over to Draco. He looked so angelic when asleep. Such a change when he had that usual sneer on his face. She noticed a smoking goblet by his bedside and recognized it as the potion that repaired broken bones as Harry had to drink that the previous month after a particularly bad curse went wrong in DADA. She crept up to the side of his bed.

"Hermione?" Madame Pomfrey asked, shocked to see her there.

"Yes?"

"Draco should be waking up soon. Be a dear and give him this potion, will you? It should bring him around to full consciousness." She handed Hermione another goblet of deep red potion, gave her a small smile and walked away. Hermione turned to Draco. She carefully tipped some of the potion into his mouth and waited for it to take effect. He stirred and his eyelids fluttered. 

"Draco? Draco?" Hermione called. "Here. Drink this potion, it'll help wake you up." She gently helped him into a sitting position and tipped most of the remaining potion into his mouth. 

"Is he awake?" Madame Pomfrey asked, reentering the room. She leaned over him. Draco's eyes snapped open and his face filled with shock. 

"Madame Pomfrey?!?" he shouted. His arm flew out and hit Madam Pomfrey weakly. His feet twitched like he was trying to run, but couldn't quite manage it. Hermione began to snicker and had to shove her face into her shirt so that they wouldn't notice.

"Oh stop fidgeting. Finish up your potion and I'll be back with dinner in an hour. Hermione, help him," Madame Pomfrey ordered. She turned and walked away.

***

"Yes ma'am," Hermione replied, trying to muffle her laughs. Draco turned to his right, and noticed Hermione for the first time. Her left hand was supporting his back, and her right hand was holding the half-empty goblet of potion…or half-full goblet, now that she was here. Draco grinned wryly and let out a small sigh of relief. 

"Nice image to wake up to, huh? Madame Pomfrey's beautiful face staring right at you," he said as soon as Madame Pomfrey was out of earshot. Hermione snickered. "Umm, I'm sorry about turning you into a tree in Potions."

"That's alright. No lasting harm done," Hermione said. Suddenly she became serious. "Are you okay? I'm sorry about Ron and Harry doing that to you. They certainly got into a lot of trouble- they have about a year's worth of detention, and it looks like Gryfinndor is out of the running for the House Cup because we lost about 500 points, which puts us into the negatives."

"It's okay. It doesn't hurt that much now." He didn't know why he wasn't getting angry at Ron or Harry. He supposed that it was just because saying that seemed like the right thing to say.

"No, it's not okay. You must have fallen over 100 feet! You could have died! Thankfully those two idiots were smart enough to put an Impediment spell under you before you hit the ground. Madame Pomfrey still had to fix the bones in your arm and your leg. And this…" Hermione reached out and gently touched the spot next to his eye where a jagged piece of wood from his broom had cut it. Draco winced and she immediately pulled her hand back. Even through all the pain, Draco smiled.

'She cares. She really cares.' The thought kept turning over in his mind. He looked up at her and realized that her eyes had filled with tears.

"Don't cry, Hermione. It's not your fault what happened. Why don't you tell me about school," he said, trying to comfort her. He hated it when she cried; it made it seem as though the world was ending.

"Well," Hermione said, drying her tears, "you've missed all the potions classes for this week, so I guess you'll have to see Snape about poisons. Then in astronomy, Professor Sinistra assigned us the projects and um… oh yeah! We also drew for partners. I drew your name, and we're presenting on February 13th. Friday the 13th," Hermione smiled. "Are you up to it?" Draco smiled back.

"Of course. Canis Majoris it is!" As he drained the goblet of potion, Draco's mind wandered over to the necklace he had bought from Hogsmeade, and the tiny hatchings of a plan began to form. 

They continued to have a pleasant conversation. Hermione left when Madame Pomfrey returned. Before bed, Madame Pomfrey offered Draco a dreamless sleep potion, but he declined. He would have rather had dreams.

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Author's Note: Aww…wasn't that sort of sweet? Lol! I hope those asterisks weren't too confusing. Lol…my…I was quite giddy when I wrote that Madame Pomfrey scene. It was originally intended to be sweet, but this thought just entered my head to change it a bit. So change it did. A plot's forming, who would have guessed? I certainly didn't, but o well! I hope to update soon, but with all those stupid school things that will reduce me to nothing but a pile of weary ashes and tears…I don't know when I can update in the near future. But I'll try! I'll REALLY try! …but only if you **REVIEW**!!!…please :P

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	5. Difficult Questions

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Disclaimer: Must I write this for every chapter? Well anyway, I don't own anything recognizable from the Harry Potter movies or books. If I did, I'd be rich and famous.

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Author's Note: Hurrah for summer solstice! :D ahh.. June 21, 2 days before my birthday, and the day Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix comes out! :D HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR to all those who celebrate it! Let's hope it's a good one. I'm SO SO SORRY I haven't updated for so long, but if it makes you feel any better, I spent all my free time studying. And I've also finished Hairy Harry, so I can completely concentrate on this story now, oh, and It's OK, which I'm co-writing with my friend jd (also D/H)! Oooo…3 updates this week (2 for Hairy Harry, and this) Be proud of me! :P :) I just hope that my sisters won't kick me off the computer! I know that this Christmas chapter is a little old, but the next chapter should about match the time we're in! Thank you to all you wonderful wonderful reviewers! I made a nice long chapter JUST for YOU cuz I love you all so much! :D Read and Review!

¤ Same asterisk system as last time- one means scene change, five means POV change

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Under the Stars

Chapter 5: Difficult Questions

Over the past week, Hermione had been visiting Draco in the hospital wing during Harry and Ron's detentions. They usually talked about the project, but they also had many other pleasant conversations. Hermione found that he was a very interesting conversationalist, unlike Ron and Harry who seemed to just talk about Quidditch, chess, Quidditch, girls, and, oh yes, Quidditch. None of which she was interested in, unfortunately. 

When Draco was finally discharged from Madam Pomfrey's care, they spent most of their time in the library, researching the stars in the constellation Canis Majoris. This project was worth 50% of their mark and required in depth research on each star in the constellation, how it was formed, how long ago it was formed, how far away it is, etc. They also had to chart the position of the stars in a detailed star map. Unfortunately, in public, Hermione and Draco still had to pretend that they loathed each other, although a friendship had formed between them. 

****

Hermione hummed to herself, strolling to the Great Hall for breakfast. It was the last day before Christmas vacation began, and although Dark activity was rising, it wasn't enough to trouble anyone, but most people still wanted to go home for Christmas. Hermione, on the other hand, would be going to the Burrow to experience Christmas in a wizarding family. She walked over to the Gryfinndor table and took her seat with Ron and Harry, like usual. Just as everyone was seated, Dumbledore stood up. 

"My students, before you enjoy your breakfast, we have an important announcement for you. Back by popular demand is the ball, but seeing as how so many people are going home for Christmas, we will be having a Saint Valentine's Ball. That is all. Please enjoy your breakfast." Dumbledore sat down just as the entire Hall erupted into whispers and giggles. 

"Another ball," Harry moaned. "Great, now I can go right into panic mode."

"Why? Can't you just ask Cho to go to the ball with you? I mean, she _is_ your girlfriend," Hermione pointed out. Harry flushed bright red.

"Umm….actually she…er…dumped me. Apparently seekers don't get along as well."

"As well as what?"

"As well as she does with the Ravenclaw Chaser."

'When did this happen? Why didn't I know this?' Hermione wondered. This led her to realize that she hadn't been spending nearly enough time with her friends. She had been busy in the library with Draco- Draco and his touchable platinum-blond hair, his sexy gray eyes, his well built body… She forced herself to stop thinking about him. What was happening? One of her best friends just got dumped, and all she could think about was how cute Draco looked. She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts.

"I'm really sorry Harry." His face seemed to be turning even redder.

"It's okay, really." Subject closed. They continued eating in silence. About halfway through the meal, Draco approached the table.

"What do you want, Malfoy?" Ron asked, ready for a fight. Harry stood up beside him, ready to pull Ron back.

"What do you want, Malfoy? I'm surprised that you can speak so clearly, seeing as how your face is so full of food," Draco taunted. Ron glared murderously at him. "Besides, I didn't come here to trade insults with you, I came to talk to Hermione- alone." 

"Stay away from her," Ron shouted.

"It's okay, Ron," Hermione said, standing up. She walked calmly out of the Hall with Draco, meanwhile her thoughts were spinning around in circles with questions.

'Why did he come up to the Gryfinndor table instead of waiting to catch me in the halls on the way to Potions? Why did he ask to speak to me alone? Could he be asking me to the ball?' Her heart sped up at her last thought. 'What should I say if he asks me? What will the Gryfinndors say? What will the Slytherins say?' By the time they reached the Hall, Hermione was about ready to faint. Sure, she was an extremely smart and logical girl, but she _was_ prone to emotional outbursts and sudden panic attacks. She could barely decide. She certainly liked Draco- a lot. But there would be such a controversy over it if they went to the ball together. What to do? What to do? Finally, the two stopped walking.

"Hermione, will…will you…" Draco began. He squeezed his eyes shut as if steeling himself for something.

'He's asking me!' Hermione shouted in her mind. She could feel herself swell up like a balloon with happiness. The yes was on the tip of her tongue when Draco blurted, "will you be in the library today? I'm having some trouble with my part of the project." The balloon popped. Hermione felt her face fall. She wasn't even aware that she was smiling before, but now she could certainly feel the frown…it seemed to be in sync with her stomach, which had fallen like a rock to the bottom of the ocean. 

She forced a smile. "Sure, I'll be there." Then, she turned and walked away in the direction of the girl's washroom, ready to erupt into tears any second. 

'How could this be?' she wondered, tears streaming down her cheeks. 'A few weeks ago, if someone had told me that I would be crying over the fact that Draco hadn't asked me to the ball, I would have either laughed or slapped them. Or both. I can't believe I'm so upset over this. Ron didn't ask me last year, and I was barely this upset.' The logical part of Hermione began to calm herself down. Eventually, she managed to stop her tears. She splashed cold water on her face and returned to the Great Hall.

"Hermione, are you okay?" Harry asked concerned.

"Yeah, what did that prat do to you? I'd trade partners for Astronomy with you, but I think you'd be just as bad with Parkinson as with Malfoy. Damn inter-house partner rules. Don't worry, we'll get him for you. He won't pick on you any more," Ron said.

"No, don't. He wasn't picking on me," Hermione said quietly.

"Then what was he doing to you?" Harry pressed.

"Nothing. We were just talking about the project."

"How come he's still not back? You were gone for an awfully long time to just be discussing a project. Hey, didn't he call you Hermione back then?! What were you two doing together!?!?!" Ron asked accusingly, his voice climbing steadily in volume. By now, half the student body was staring at them. 

"NOTHING, OKAY? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!!! HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU? DO I NEED TO SPELL IT OUT? N-O-T-H-I-N-G! NOTHING!!!" Hermione screeched, in one breath. She couldn't take it anymore. She was telling the absolute truth, and it was killing her. The truth hurts. "What are you looking at?" she snapped at the all the people staring open-mouthed at her. They automatically averted their gaze under her angry stare and went back to eating, whispering amongst themselves. Hermione took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Ron. I was telling the truth, honest." 

"I believe you, Hermione," Ron said as though he didn't believe her, but didn't want to provoke anymore sudden outbursts. Hermione buried her face in her hands and groaned.

*

It was now Christmas vacation. Hermione was nestled in Ginny's room, working on her transfiguration homework. The problem was, she could barely concentrate, as the pull of the Weasleys and Christmas was far stronger than "Transfiguration and You- A Guide to Spotting the Unspottable", which was basically talking about transfiguring Dalmatians or something like that…she wasn't quite sure as she couldn't absorb any of the information. She sighed and pushed the book off of the desk and pulled out her starmap. Her gaze wandered from Canis Majoris up to the constellation Draco. She sighed again, but this time it was a dreamy sigh. She allowed herself to daydream about him briefly, then frowned as she remembered their last meeting. He seemed confused when she asked him what he was having trouble on. Instead, he just spent a lot of time fidgeting. So did she, as a matter of fact. She had never felt so awkward around anyone as she had just then. She wanted to keep their relationship as platonic as possible…at least, that's what she told herself- her heart seemed to disagree, speeding up whenever she just walked by him in the hall. She sighed yet again; she seemed to be doing that a lot lately. Well, she might as well indulge in her daydreams, after all, she was sure that this crush would be short-lived. A dreamy smile spread across her face as she thought about how cute his lopsided grin was and how sincere he seemed when he wished her a "Happy Christmas."

_tap tap_

She was startled out of her reverie by a tapping sound. She looked up and noticed an Eagle Owl outside the window. She opened it and relieved it of its burden. It was a present, wrapped in beautiful wrapping paper. She looked at the tag- 

For Hermione, 

From Draco Malfoy.-

The owl prepared itself to fly away.

"Wait," Hermione called. She ran to her luggage and pulled out a box. She had been shopping around for this for quite a while, but she wasn't sure if she should send it or not. She hurriedly wrapped it, fashioned a tiny card for it and attached it to the owl's leg. It hooted and took to the sky. Hermione watched until it disappeared from sight before turning to her present. She sneaked a furtive glance outside the window. Good. The others were still outside playing Quidditch. She gingerly removed the ribbon and was about to pull apart the tape when she realized that there was no tape holding it together. She tugged at a flap on the sides of the present. Immediately, the entire wrapping fell apart neatly and folded itself up. She smiled and picked up the box. It was slim and was about the length of her forearm. She lifted the lid and gasped. Lying inside the box was a single rose carved out of glass. Its beauty was breathtaking. The stem was clear, but it was full of detail. There were no thorns on the rose, but the leaves along the edge of it were veined and the edges were cut in little spikes, not sharp, but imitating a rose exactly. The petals were blue, and each one was separately created, unique in its own way. She picked it up delicately and brought it to her nose, not sure what to expect. It was a glass rose, but it released a crisp floral scent that could have only belonged to a glass rose. Inside the box was another note-

This is a rose picked from the Island of Etherose. 

The temperatures differ greatly there, heating the sand into glass, then freezing it. No one's sure how the items gain their shape or colour, but I went on a short visit there and thought that you might like this.

I meant to ask you earlier, but…well…would you go to the ball with me? I hope that wasn't too sudden, but I would like to have a chance to get to know you better.

I'll see you at school.

Hope you have a happy Christmas.-

Hermione practically danced her way downstairs to the kitchen. Mrs. Weasley was in there preparing dinner. 

"Hello Hermione. What may I do for you?" she asked.

"Oh, I was just wondering if I could borrow a vase," Hermione said, displaying the rose. 

"Certainly, dear." Mrs. Weasley conjured up a vase and handed it to Hermione. "That should suit your flower just perfectly. 

Just then, Ginny walked in. "Oooooo!! What a beautiful flower, Hermione! Who gave it to you?"

"I'd rather not say," Hermione smiled mysteriously. She turned and waltzed out of the kitchen, still in her own little world. She remembered her earlier thoughts. Platonic, shmatonic! She was in l-o-v-e.

*****

"My students, before you enjoy your breakfast, we have an important announcement for you," Albus Dumbledore began. Draco looked up, interested. "Back by popular demand is the ball, but seeing as how so many people are going home for Christmas, we will be having a Saint Valentine's Ball. That is all. Please enjoy your breakfast." Everyone around him began talking, particularly Pansy.

"Oh, Drakie dear, what colour suits me the best? What should I wear to the ball?" 

"A paper bag over your head," Draco muttered. Pansy either didn't hear him, or chose to ignore his comment. Either way, she still babbled on…and on…and on about useless garbage. He tuned her out and began thinking. This ball would fit in perfectly with his plan. Excellent. 

"And then I'll have my hair up in that new look. How does that sound?" she asked.

"Fine, Pansy," he said absentmindedly. He stared over at the Gryfinndor table at a certain brown-haired fifth year. She was so beautiful…

"And I'll wear that hot pink dress robe. Sound good?"

"Fine, Pansy." And she had been spending most of her time with him. Him! He could have sang. (**A/N: **Yah I know, Tom Felton was a church boy! :D squeals so cute!) Maybe he should ask her to the ball right now? Although he didn't want to scare her. Hmm…he didn't want anyone else to ask her though, especially Ron. He knew that Ron was dating Lavender, but he saw the way he looked at Hermione. It was different from the way Harry looked at her- like a friend. He just did not trust him…

"And you can pick me up around 6. How does that sound, Drakie?" Pansy asked.

She was still talking? "Fine, Pansy." Draco said automatically. He pushed his chair out. He would do it now. 

As he approached the table, he saw Ron look up and the tips of his ears burned red. "What do you want, Malfoy?" Ron asked. Draco noticed that his fists were clenched. He was certainly jumpy today. Harry stood up beside Ron, ready to pull him back. Despite his need to impress Hermione, he couldn't resist just one taunt.

"What do you want, Malfoy? I'm surprised that you can speak so clearly, seeing as how your face is so full of food," Draco sneered. Ron glared murderously at him. "Besides, I didn't come here to trade insults with you, I came to talk to Hermione- alone" he added, unable to resist the urge to annoy Ron further. 

"Stay away from her," Ron shouted.

"It's okay, Ron," Hermione said, standing up. 

They walked away together, and Draco couldn't help but notice how wonderful she looked when she smiled. He was glad she wasn't mad at him. They walked out of the Great Hall, and his nerves began to fail a bit. By the time they reached an isolated place, his knees were positively shaking. They stopped walking and Hermione turned to face Draco expectantly.

'Do it now. Just ask her!' he urged himself. He took a deep breath.

"Hermione, will…will you…" Draco began. 

'Just say it now. Come on, Draco,' he thought, trying to give himself some pep talk. For a moment, a burst of courage seized him, but was gone just as quickly. He was horribly aware of how much he was shaking. He squeezed his eyes shut, hoping for that burst of courage to come again, but it didn't return. 

"Will you be in the library today? I'm having some trouble with my part of the project," Draco blurted. He wanted to kick himself. Then he saw Hermione's face fall, which made him want to kick himself harder. 

"Sure, I'll be there." Then she turned and walked away.

'Maybe she wanted me to ask her. I should have done it. It's too late now,' he thought dejectedly. He watched her walk away, and he shook his head. He headed to his own common room, deciding to forego breakfast. He could do without Pansy's constant talking, anyway. He trudged to the common room, cursing his courage. 'Maybe it'll return by the time I meet her again,' he hoped.

*

Draco walked all over the train, trying to find an empty compartment. It was useless. Almost everyone was going home for Christmas. 

"Oh, Drakie, I've got an empty compartment here," he heard a voice calling. He shuddered. No compartment would be peaceful if Pansy was in it. However, there were no other empty compartments, that is, until Crabbe and Goyle arrived to kick some meek first years out. He groaned and entered her compartment, taking a seat as far away from her as possible, which basically meant the seat diagonal to hers. "Come sit next to me," she purred. He suppressed another shudder. However, he didn't trust her. He watched her eyes, and they eventually slid to the roof of the train and back again. He looked up. Mistletoe. Ugh. He pulled out his wand.

"Incendio!" The mistletoe burst into flame and fell to the floor, charred and burnt. 

"What did you do that for?" she whined. 

'Can this girl get any thicker?' Draco fixed her with a glare. She squirmed and looked away. Finally, in an attempt to break the silence, she said, "Draco, did you hear what happened in the Great Hall today?" More gossip…could this girl do anything more? "-with Granger?" Draco's head snapped up. "She went absolutely mad. She started screaming about 'nothing happening', and she was really upset about it. I think she's lying, but if you hadn't already agreed to go to the dance with me, I would have been worried," Pansy laughed. Draco hadn't heard her last sentence. He was too preoccupied about Hermione being upset about nothing happening.

'Maybe she really did want to go to the ball with me. I should ask her when I get home. I _will_ ask her when I get home.' Just then, Crabbe and Goyle arrived.

"We've found a compartment," they said.

"Great!" Draco breathed a sigh of relief. He smirked at Pansy and walked out with Crabbe and Goyle, still thinking of what to do.

*

Ahh…finally home. Draco smiled. It wasn't as though he liked to be home, he just wanted to get this over with as soon as possible. He sat down at his desk, prepared to write, but nothing came to mind. Just then, he mother came into his room.

"Draco, I'm making a little visit to the Island of Etherose to do some Christmas shopping." Draco nodded then paused. An idea quickly formed in his mind- he knew that he could probably also pick up something for Hermione there, which would also hopefully make his question be met with a successful answer.

"Can I come too?"

*

He smiled to himself as he slipped the note into the box and shut the lid. After wrapping the box with "Connie's Christmas Conforming Wrapping Paper", he tied the bow, attached the gift tag and sent it off with his owl. 

A few days later, Draco was surprised to see his owl returning with a package attached to its leg. He ripped open the packaging and found a tiny card inside-

Dear Draco,

Happy Christmas! Thank you very much for your present.

From,

Hermione-

Under the card lay a box. He opened it and smiled. Inside the box was a pair of gloves, a hat, and a scarf, all matching the colour of his eyes. He tried them on, and found that they fit perfectly. Underneath all these items was another note-

To keep the dragon inside warm.-

Cute. He grinned. He was definitely looking forward to going back to school.

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Author's Note: K! There you people go, a nice long, fluffy chapter. By the way, I know that this story isn't quite realistic, and the characters are slightly OOC, but this is just fanfiction, and please don't flame because of that. You were warned that this was 100% fluff! Also, if you think that Hermione's bit on 'being in love' was a little too soon, please remember that she's a teenager and teenagers have raging hormones. coff coff :D Z'anyways, I hope to update soon, so please please **REVIEW!!! **I appreciate all comments, except for flames. Thanks again to all my reviewers! And once again, before I leave you, **REVIEW!!! **Please and Thanks! ;) :)

Oh, and if anyone wants me to email them when I have my next update, can you please leave your email in a review? And also, does anyone know how to make things align in the centre? I used to be able to do it, but not lately…strange! Anyway, **REVIEW!!!**

Ok…now the absolute last thing : p I'm thinking about ending this story next chapter or the one after (with a really long chapter), or I could go on and complete the year. I desperately need your input, so please tell me if I should end it or not soon in you **reviews**. Thanks again!!!


	6. Draco's Kisses

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Disclaimer: I do not own anything recognizable from the Harry Potter books or movies. Lol! I WISH!!!

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Author's Note: Hi people! Countdown to the fifth book… I'm SO HUGELY SORRY about the long updating period but you know how it is with school…and procrastination! I'm making it up with back-to-back updates though, I swear! :P I think that I will end this story in the next chapter! It's a little hard to pack everything into two chapters, especially the last one where everything happens, so there might be a few plot holes, but I'm trying my best, which is another reason why this is out so late. Well either way, this chapter will be my longest yet, and I hope you will read and enjoy! :)

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Under the Stars

Chapter 6: Draco's Kisses

Hermione sat in Astronomy, methodically shredding a piece of parchment in her hands. When Professor Sinistra announced that it was time to work in pairs, she crumpled the sheet and tossed it into her desk and began to wring her hands. This was the part she was dreading. After thinking about it for the rest of Christmas vacation, she realized that she cared deeply for Draco although they had only met two months ago, and weren't even officially dating. The problem was that they had _only_ met two months ago, and that was a short time for a Slytherin and Gryfinndor to do an about-face and start declaring their love for each other…although she wouldn't go so far as to say _love_. She watched Draco frown and drag his feet over to her desk, but she could see the smile and nervousness in his eyes. She could feel her heart slowly shattering...she would have to reject him. She would have to deny his and her feelings and tell him no. She nervously went over her speech that she had planned.

'No…' The little word echoed in her mind. Two letters could be so hard to say. 'No!' her mind screamed. 'Don't say no! Say yes!' 

"Hey Hermione! Did you like your present?" he asked when he settled himself. Hermione couldn't help it. She melted when she heard his voice.

"Very much! It was wonderful!" She reached into her bookbag and withdrew the rose, just briefly showing it to him before quickly lowering it back into her bag before anyone could see it. "I put an Unbreakable charm on it so it can't break, that way I can carry it around with me all the time." In reality, she had brought the rose to return it, but she didn't have the heart to turn down Draco's feelings when she saw the look on his face.

"And…about the…note?" Draco asked, his voice becoming husky with excitement. Hermione turned red and looked down. This was the question she was waiting for, yet dreading.

"I…" Hermione paused for a moment and collected her thoughts before launching into her speech. "I'm not sure. What will everyone say? I mean, we've been enemies up 'til this year. Besides that, I'm a Gryfinndor and you're a Slytherin…" Hermione said hesitantly. She saw Draco's face fall into a frown, and felt her insides twinge with guilt. "…But I don't care what they say. My answer is yes!" 

"Yes?" he asked, slightly dazed.

'Harry and Ron and everyone else can just sod off. I don't care anymore!'

"Yes!" A few students stared at them, and Hermione realized that she had been speaking too loudly. She coughed and said, "Yes, I told you I would write that. Why did you go and do it? You left out important information." Draco smirked, and they mock-argued until the others went back to work. Hermione felt herself smiling…she was going to the ball with Draco!

Draco's voice cut into Hermione's daydreams. "Anyway, about our project, we can meet at about 2:15 (am) in the Entrance Hall to use the Astrocelestialscope. Is that okay with you?" 

Hermione fixed him with a blank look. 'What is he talking about? Oh yes, the telescope in the Astronomy Tower.' 

"Yes, that'll be fine. I can't wait to see you there!"

*

Hermione leaned against one of the pillars in the Entrance Hall while waiting for Draco. She absentmindedly twirled a strand of her curly brown hair around her finger. Ron and Harry flanked her sides, much to her chagrin. 

"Come on. You don't have to be so protective of me. I'll be fine," Hermione pleaded, trying to get Harry and Ron to leave, not that she meant it in a mean way. She just needed a bit of time for herself…and Draco. 

"You can leave now Weasley, Potter. She'll be safe with me. I promise I won't do anything you wouldn't do," a voice said. Whirling around, Hermione turned to face Draco, the only person who was happy to see him. Beside her, Ron blushed a deep red.

"You stay away from her, Malfoy," Ron whispered sharply. Hermione tugged at his sleeve.

"Please, Ron. I'll be fine." Hermione looked at Ron pleadingly. Ron grudgingly turned away.

"Fine, but if he does anything to you, you be sure to let us know." With that, he walked away, turning now and again suspiciously. 

Draco waited until they had turned a corner and were out of sight. "Let's go," he said, taking her by the crook of the arm and leading her up the steps to the North Tower, the way a gentleman would. When they finally reached the top 10 minutes later, Hermione was about to sit down on the stone balcony next to the Astrocelestialscope but Draco put out a hand to stop her.

"Draco…wha-?" Draco reached into his backpack and withdrew a blanket charmed for softness and warmth. He spread it on the floor while Hermione watched in amazement.

'Wow…I knew Draco was romantic, but not _this_ romantic. I think…' and Hermione's mind abandoned thought as Draco grabbed her hand and pulled her into a sitting position right beside him, and only then did Hermione realize that she had been gaping at the scene. They opened their bags and began to work to the light of the stars and lanterns Draco had placed around the blanket. 

Draco cleared his throat. "So…" Hermione stopped working and looked up. She was starting to feel a little dizzy. Two in the morning did that to you, especially when coupled with no sleep the night before. "Umm…not to sound stupid or anything, but what colour are your robes going to be for the ball?"

"Robes?" Hermione repeated dully, trying to force herself to stay awake and focus on what Draco was saying.

"Yeah, I wanted to get you a corsage or something similar to that, and I wanted to make sure that it matched your robes." Hermione finally caught on.

"Oh, that. Well, I'm actually planning on wearing muggle dress clothes. I haven't chosen it out yet though." 

'So tired…so very tired…' Hermione couldn't stifle a yawn. Draco saw it and immediately volunteered to go down to the kitchens and fetch some coffee.

"Sure, that'd be great. I'll just finish up here," Hermione said, turning back to the numerous sheets spread out on the blanket. When Draco disappeared down the steps, Hermione tried to fill in some of the pieces of parchment. Tried.

'Maybe I can just rest my eyes for just a little while…'

*

Hermione woke up with the sun shining directly on her face. She sat up and stretched, and something warm and fuzzy that had been wrapped around her slipped off. She pulled it off the floor looked around her. It looked like she was in an old classroom, and someone had made a makeshift bed using a bunch of chairs pushed together in the shape of a bed. She rose unsteadily to her feet and noticed a stack of papers sitting on a desk near her 'bed'. It was a pile of sheets from her project. Suddenly Hermione remembered- she had fallen asleep while working on the project last night! She glanced at her wristwatch- 10am. 

'Ohmigoodness! I'm late for class!' She realized that what she had been using as a blanket was actually a robe and tossed it on quickly. Racing out the door, she barely noticed that she had been in a room near the bottom of the Astronomy Tower. She headed towards her Transfiguration classroom, having to wait impatiently for the stairs to change positions before she could completely proceed. She passed the Great Hall and slowed down immediately. 'Why are there still voices in there?' She opened the door and peered inside. People were eating breakfast. 'What's going on here?'

"Something wrong?" a voice startled Hermione. Gasping, she turned to face the speaker.

"Draco! What's happening here? Why isn't anyone in their classes?" Hermione asked, bewildered. She saw a familiar smirk appear on his face. 

"It's Sunday. I thought that someone as smart as you would be able to tell the days of the week." Hermione felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. 

"I-I…" she stuttered.

Pansy walked out from behind Draco. "Honestly, Granger. Maybe you should spend more time on your social life instead of on books, and you might actually manage to get a date for the ball, although I can't possibly imagine what self-respecting wizard would dance with you," she sneered. She leaned possessively against Draco for a brief second, then pushed past Hermione, through the door of the Great Hall. 

"Sorry about that," Draco whispered when the door shut. "I didn't want Pansy to know about…us."

"I understand," Hermione said, relief flooding her system. She turned to go into the Hall for breakfast. 

"Wait," Draco suddenly said, placing a hand on Hermione's shoulder. Heart racing, Hermione faced him. For a brief second, an image of Draco's lips pressed against hers flashed in her head. 

"Yes?" she asked, shakily. All of her senses were heightened for a moment, and she was vaguely aware that his hand was still on her shoulder.

"You can't go in there like that." He gestured at her robe. "It's lucky that Pansy didn't notice." Looking down, Hermione realized that there was a Slytherin crest on the robes. Feeling extremely embarrassed, she took off the robe and handed it silently back to its owner. She felt very self-conscious, as Draco hadn't stopped _looking_ at her the entire time (**A/N**: after all, he is only a teenage boy still! Lol).

"Thanks for completing the project and…everything," she said weakly, nodding at the robe. Unsure of what to do next, she just stood there.

"It's all thanks to your notes. I'll see you later?"

"Sure!" Hermione shot him a smile and flounced back up to her room to deposit the project notes and to grab a fresh robe. She wasn't looking forward to breakfast- she would have quite a lot of explaining to do to Harry and Ron about why she didn't go back to Gryfinndor Tower last night.

*****

(A/N: This part goes back in time again when they are returning to Hogwarts after Christmas vacation)

Draco wandered up and down the train, peering into each compartment. Finally he found the one he was looking for and stopped just outside the door, listening to the voices inside.

"Come on, 'Mione! Just tell us who gave you the rose," came a wheedling voice from inside. Weasley. Draco smirked. 

"No, Ron. You don't tell me everything when I ask, so why should I tell you everything?"

"Oh come on. You've been acting so strange all Christmas. At least give us a _little_ hint!"

"Harry!"

"See, Harry agrees with me! That's two to one! Out with it!" 

Draco decided that it was time to get Hermione out of hot water. He slid open the door and stepped in, sweeping the tiny compartment with his steely gray eyes. 

"Hello Potter, Weasley, Granger," he drawled, nodding to each of them, his eyes lingering on Hermione. He grinned as Hermione looked up at him. Their eyes locked for a brief second before she dropped her head, a light flush appearing on her cheeks. He smiled to himself. 'She's so adorable when she blushes.'

"What do you want, Malfoy?" Ron snarled, leaping to his feet. Harry copied his movement.

"Isn't that getting a little old now, Weasley?" Draco mocked. Ron growled and whipped out his wand. Draco had his own wand drawn as well, but backed out of the compartment.

"I just wanted to see you all again. I'm afraid this is where I leave you." His voice dripped with hidden messages. He just hoped that Hermione got the clue. Either way, he had managed to distract Ron and Harry from bothering Hermione again for awhile, at least. At the veryleast, he had gotten a glimpse of Hermione for the first time in over two weeks, which was his mission in the first place. He grinned to himself again and returned to his own compartment, taking care to wipe the smile off his face before he entered.

*

"Alright, class. Today I'll be assigning you schedules for star observation. Each group will get a turn to go to the top of the north tower to use the Astrocelestialscope (ACS). The schedule reads as follows…" Draco listened in a daze. One in the morning was a very hard time to concentrate. What genius came up with the bright idea to have class so late at night anyway? He finally picked up when he heard his and Hermione's name. Briefly coming out of his stupor, he jotted down the time. 

'Two thirty in the morning…great," he thought sarcastically. 'At least it's a Saturday.' 

The class was the usual- taking notes, then breaking into their groups to work on the projects. Now _this_ was the part he had been looking forward to. He sauntered to Hermione's desk with an almost nervous air surrounding him.

'I hope she liked the present. I hope she says yes!' Still, he had to frown and purposely dragged his feet when walking over so no one would suspect anything, although they would have had plenty to suspect over Christmas.

"Hey Hermione! Did you like your present?" he asked quietly. Hermione's face lit up and she nodded. 

"Very much! It was wonderful!" She dropped her hand into her bookbag and withdrew the rose, just briefly showing it to him before quickly lowering it back into her bag. "I put an Unbreakable charm on it so it can't break, that way, I can carry it around with me all the time." Draco's heart soared. Oh, she was so sweet!

"And…about the…note?" Draco asked. Hermione blushed and looked down.

'Please let her answer be yes. Oh please…'

"I…" Hermione paused. "I'm not sure. What will everyone say? I mean, we've been enemies up 'til this year. Besides that, I'm Gryfinndor and you're Slytherin," Hermione said hesitantly. Draco felt extremely disappointed, and that showed from his facial expressions. "But I don't care what they say. My answer is yes!" Draco looked up, hope slowly reentering. 

"Yes?" he asked dimly, barely aware of what she just said. 

"Yes," Hermione repeated, grinning from ear to ear. She said this slightly too loud though. A few heads looked their way, curiously. It was obvious that the rumour that was started before Christmas was still circulating. Hermione cleared her throat and said, "I told you I would write that. Why did you go and do it? You left out important information." Draco smirked, and they bickered until the others turned away. While they were arguing and acting angry with each other, Draco's mind was doing the exact opposite. He felt like jumping for joy and shouting. As it was, he was shouting in his mind.

'Yes! She said yes!' 

Just then, Professor Sinistra dismissed the class, and Draco levitated down to the dungeons, not literally, but almost.

*

The day for him and Hermione to use the Astrocelestialscope (ACS) was soon approaching. Draco sat in his room, silently going over a mental list of things he would need, not only for the project, but to maximize his chances for romance, especially since Valentine's Day was just a few weeks away. He pulled out the box containing the necklace. Stroking it softly with his fingers, he looked up sharply when he heard a sound at the door. 

'Drakie?' came a voice from a certain pug-faced girl.

Slamming down the lid of the box, he resisted his first impulse of diving under the bed. Instead he stood his ground as she walked in the door.

'Darn girl. Why is she always irritating me?'

"What, Pansy?" 

"I was just wondering where you were." She glided over to him and sat on his bed. Her hand brushed against the side of the box. "What's this?" She opened the box and gasped when she saw what lay inside. 

'Shoot! Shoot, shoot, shoot!' Draco cursed. 'Why didn't I hide that when I had the chance?' He shut his eyes and gritted his teeth as Pansy let out an ear-piercing squeal.

"Why Drakie! Is this for me? It's beautiful!!!"

"Why would it be for you?" Draco sneered, fixing her with his best glare. Pansy immediately dropped the box.

"B-b-but Drakie, I-I thought t-that…" Tears threatened to rain down Pansy's face, and Draco automatically felt awful. Malfoys may have little to fear, but he dreaded being in the company of a crying female. He awkwardly patted Pansy's shoulder.

"Err…There, there, don't cry. The necklace is just for umm…my…mother! Yeah, that's it." He thankfully noted that Pansy's tears had begun to slow. He gently led her to the door. "I want it to be a surprise, so I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone about it, alright?" Pansy smiled at him, nodded her head, and stepped out the door. Draco shut it behind her and gave a huge sigh of relief. That was too close for comfort.

*

(A/N: The beginning of this part my seem like it's from Hermione's POV, but it's really Draco's)

Days then weeks passed after the night Hermione and Draco used the ACS and the week of the project deadline, followed by the Valentine's ball was fast approaching. Hermione and Draco were becoming closer with each day, but something kept on nagging at Hermione's mind, telling her that she had forgotten something…something important. The sudden memory of what she had forgotten was what sent her running up to a bewildered Draco on the day of their presentation. 

"Draco, it's horrible! This really is an awful day, and on a Friday the 13th no less!" she cried as she plowed into him in the middle of a hallway. Draco had no idea what was wrong, but he pulled Hermione into an empty classroom before the halls crowded with people rushing to class. 

"Shh. Calm down, Hermione! What's wrong?" Draco asked quietly, stroking her hair.

"I forgot! I can't believe I forgot all about it!"

"Forgot about what?"

"We need a visual aid for our project! It's worth a large amount of our project and I completely forgot about it! It's too late to do anything now!" Hermione cried.

"Relax, Hermione. I'll come up with something, but it's still just a small part of our mark. Besides, we still have the rest of the day to come up with something. I'll take care of it though, don't worry," he assured her.

"But we present tonight! How could you possibly come up with something so soon?" Hermione asked skeptically, although her hysteria was drawing to a close.

"Never doubt a Malfoy," Draco smirked back. Just then, the bell overhead went off, signaling that classes were about to begin. Hermione's eyes grew wide and she gasped.

"I'm going to be late! Thanks for everything though, Draco. I'll see you later." And before Draco realized what was happening, she kissed him on the cheek and scurried away. Draco walked dreamily to his next class, his hand on his cheek.

*

Draco stared out the window nearby as Professor Binns droned on and on about…who knows what about. None of the Hufflepuffs or Slytherins had been paying any attention to his class since the first week of school. 

'What visual aid could we possibly use? Designs of stars in the constellation? Nah, too plain. I'll bet everybody will have that. Then what else can we do? Never doubt a Malfoy my foot!'

The bell rang and he left the classroom with these thoughts still on his mind, but for now he had other matters on his hands. Literally.

"Pansy? What do you think you're doing?"

"Holding your hand? Is there something wrong with that?" Pansy asked, confused. "I just thought that since we were going to the ball together, it would be okay to hold-"

'Going to the ball?' Draco wondered.

"Wait a second! What do you mean 'going to the ball together'?"

"I asked you before, when Dumbledore announced the ball, and you agreed…" Suddenly, the truth his Draco, and he began to curse about his not paying attention.

"I'm not going to the ball with you," he blurted, unable to think of a smooth way out of this.

"WHAT? WHY NOT? WHAT DID I DO?" Pansy wailed. Draco didn't want to have a hysterical female on his hands in the middle of the hall, so he did what anybody would have done-- no not run…lie! 

"Well…you see…it's like this. I have other things to do that night because…because…" He fumbled around a bit, trying to pull a decent excuse out of his mind. "It's my…uh…my mother's… birthday! That's right…and I want to visit her then. Sorry I forgot completely about it before when you asked me."

'Nice job, Stutter,' he congratulated himself sarcastically. 'But it looks like Pansy's falling for it.' 

"Oh…I see! That's why you got her that necklace, right?"

"Necklace? That's right! The necklace!" Draco cried, his eyes lighting up. He prepared to race back to his dormitory, but he still had to deal with Pansy. "I have to go now to do some last minute work. Bye!" 

"Wait a minute!" Pansy called.

'So maybe she hasn't fallen for it.' Normally, Draco would have just run off by now, but seeing as how he had to stay on good terms with Pansy because of their parents, he was forced to stop and face her again.

"I don't mind that you're not going to the ball, but you know, I am awfully disappointed," she said, staring coyly up at him.

"And so…?" Draco asked, very clearly confused. All he knew was that he didn't like the look she was giving him.

"You need to make it up to me, but after this, we'll call it even."

"After-" Before Draco could do anything, she had her arms around him and her lips pressed tightly against his.

'What the-!?' At that moment, he heard a gasp behind them. He didn't care what his parents and Pansy thought anymore. He was going to defy them tomorrow anyway. He shoved Pansy away by her shoulders and whipped around, noting curly brown hair disappearing behind the corner. 

"Damn it! What the heck was that?" he shouted at Pansy. He didn't bother waiting for an answer and just ran after Hermione, but she had already disappeared.

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A/N: Uh oh! I actually ended a chapter on a bad note! Was that a first? Very possibly so! :D Have no fear, the last chapter will be posted tomorrow night (EST) or Friday night at the absolute LATEST! In the meantime, how bout you check out my friend (jd) and my site: s! Oh yes…and of course, don't forget to **REVIEW**!!!

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	7. First Kiss

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Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. If I did, the fifth book would be even larger than it is now! :D Also, I'd be on the set constantly to meet on the actors n actresses! Particularly the trio n draco! : )

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Author's Note: Final chapter! :D, :'( Here ya go, incognito! Finally the scene with the necklace! : p Fitting that it's the last chapter too, eh? Woo…this is gonna be one heckuva looooong chapter! As always, read , review, and enjoy! 

(As usual, *means scene change, *****means POV change) Oh! And there's some swearing in this chapter…just a bit, and something that most teens have been exposed to anyway.

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Under the Stars

Chapter 7: First Kiss

'How _could_ he? How could he _betray_ me like that?' Hermione stumbled down the hall, tears obstructing her vision. She heard footsteps behind her, so she sped up, not caring who or what she ran into. 

"Hey, Hermione! What-" Ron asked, perplexed, but she was gone before he could even complete his sentence. 

Hermione kept running, feet pounding to the only place she knew that Draco couldn't reach her-- Gryfinndor Tower. 

"Are you alright, dear?" the Fat Lady asked, upon seeing Hermione's tears coursing down her cheeks.

"Snuffaluff," we all Hermione said. The portrait swung open, admitting Hermione within. She ignored the strange looks she was getting, raced up to the dormitories and flung herself on her bed, tears still running down her cheeks, matting the hair around her face. 

'Filthy mudblood…the school's become a disgrace since they've let in mudbloods…' How could she have ever thought that someone who had said all those nasty things to her could ever care for her? Just then, Ginny knocked on the door to the 5th year dormitories.

"Hermione, can I come in?" Ginny asked in a grumpy voice. 

'Go away. Go away…' Hermione thought hard, trying to will Ginny to leave her alone. All her thinking couldn't help her, however, and Ginny opened the door.

"Hermione, what's this all about. I ran into Draco outside the Tower and he gave me this- Hermione! What's wrong?" she asked, finally noticing Hermione's tears.

"N-nothing…it's just…" she hesitated, trying to decide whether or not to tell Ginny. Finding genuine concern in her eyes, she gathered her courage and continued, "Draco. He…I…" She proceeded to tell her younger friend about how her and Draco's relationship began, Ginny's eyes growing larger at some parts, but she generally stayed silent throughout it all. Hermione was glad because she didn't think that she would be able to continue if she had to stop.

"That stupid, idiotic, slimy git!" Ginny exclaimed when Hermione was done. She continued to rant about Draco, her colourful vocabulary far from being exhausted. Finally she calmed down. "Why would he do that though? You're so much better than that ugly witch Parkinson!"

"I-I don't know. I can't understand why he'd do that unless he was using me the entire time…" Ginny moved closer to Hermione to give her a hug as Hermione began crying again, and as she did, something crinkled in her pocket.

"Hey…he gave this note to me in the hall before and told me to give it to you. Do you think it'll give some kind of explanation?" Hope returned to Hermione's eyes. She reached out for the parchment and quickly scanned it. "Well?" Ginny asked impatiently.

"He just said that it was all a misunderstanding…he wants to meet me in the trophy room in a few minutes so he can explain. Ginny what do I do? I-I don't think I can face him yet," Hermione faltered.

"I'll go for you then. He at least owes you a reason for doing that, and it had better be a good one." Ginny stormed out the room, leaving Hermione alone with her very confused thoughts.

*****

Draco paced the room, looking up at the door every few seconds to see if Hermione had come down yet. Finally the door opened, but instead of the brunette he had been expecting, he saw a fiery redhead marching up to him.

"Explain," she said simply, crossing her arms and giving him a stern look.

"I'd rather talk to Herm-"

Ginny cut him off. "She didn't want to come. I'll bring your explanation to her." Draco didn't see any other way around it. He didn't exactly want to explain anything to this hot-tempered witch in front of him, but it looked like he had no other choice.

"Fine. Like I was saying, it was all a misunderstanding. Pansy came onto me and took me by surprise…"

"Oh, so _she_ came onto _you_! And it came as a _surprise_ to you, hmm? A _surprise_ that a girl who has been chasing after you since you came to Hogwarts kissed you? Please! I suppose she just launched herself at you from a dark corner while you were _angelically_ minding your own business and helping old ladies cross the street? A _misunderstanding_? Yeah right!" Ginny screamed. She slapped Draco across the face. "That's for being a two-faced, cheating prat and hurting Hermione." She left the room, preparing to tell Hermione all about their little exchange, leaving Draco to rub his stinging cheek.

'I was telling the truth, though. Oh no, what's she going to tell Hermione now? I need to think of something, and fast!'

*****

Hermione climbed up the steps of the Astronomy Tower, dread slowing her every step. Ginny had told her Draco's claim to innocence, and as much as Hermione wanted to believe him, she didn't know if she could. It certainly seemed characteristic of Pansy to do that, though. Then again, the story he told Ginny was far too simple than to be a fabricated story, or had he purposely done that? She just didn't know what to think anymore. She seated herself at her desk and put her head down in her arms, attempting to block out the world until class began. However, she became acutely aware of a pair of boots standing in front of her desk belonging to none other than the person she most wanted to avoid at the moment.

"Hermione, please talk to me. You don't understand…"

"Ok everybody! Have a seat please! We have a lot of presentations today, and I know that you don't want to miss a single one!" Professor Sinistra called out. Draco trudged back to his seat and Hermione gave a sigh of relief then groaned. She would have to pull herself together if she wanted a decent presentation mark. She watched group after group go up and give their presentations. She noted proudly that none of them had as detailed information and their analyses had very little depth. She did, however, notice that they also all had very nice visuals, and she shot a worried glance at Draco. He looked back and gave her a small smile, but she whipped her head back to the front, remembering what he had done. 

Finally it was their turn to present. She steeled herself and headed up to the front. Her and Draco had practised endlessly in their frequent meetings in the library so they switched on and off effortlessly. Despite the anger Hermione was feeling towards Draco at the moment, she knew that their presentation was flawless. Finally, they reached the end of their presentation.

"No visual aid?" Professor Sinistra asked, marking something down on a piece of parchment. Hermione looked helplessly at Draco.

"Oh, we do have a very special one right here." He pulled out a velvet-covered box. "First, can we turn off the lights?" They did so, and he opened the box, revealing a beautiful necklace with a glowing charm in the centre. The entire class gasped at the brightness of the necklace and its beauty. 

'What does a necklace have to do with Canis Majoris?' Hermione wondered.

The lights were turned back on and Draco began to explained that the charm was magicked to hold a piece of the star Sirius, which is the brightest star in the night sky, and a part of the constellation Canis Majoris. He began to give some information on Sirius.

'Wow! He's really been doing a lot of extra research,' Hermione thought.

Suddenly a girl she didn't know in Slytherin squealed, "Oh Draco, where'd you get that lovely necklace?" He paused and gave a meaningful look at Hermione. 

"It's not mine-- it's Hermione's." He removed the necklace from the box and held it out to her. Hermione could only watch in amazement.

"What? Mine? But…Draco…" Hermione breathed, unable to form coherent sentences. She distantly heard the clatter of chairs as Harry and Ron stood up quickly, most likely from shock, but she couldn't focus on them. All she could think was: Why was he giving her the necklace? He must have spent a lot of money on it. Was it true? Could he possibly care for her? These thoughts were all spinning around in her head, but they were drowned out by a sudden scream.

"DRACO! YOU SAID THAT THE NECKLACE WAS FOR YOUR MOTHER! WHY DID YOU LIE TO ME?!" Pansy screeched. She suddenly turned her anger on Hermione. The look in her eyes caused Hermione to take an involuntary step backwards. "YOU DID THIS! HE WAS GOING TO GO TO THE BALL WITH ME, BUT YOU STOLE HIM AWAY FROM ME, YOU BITCH!! YOU'RE NOTHING BUT A MUDBLOOD! HE'LL NEVER CARE FOR YOU OR LOVE YOU!! YOU'RE **NOTHING!!!**" These were some of the things Hermione had been thinking before. Her chest began to constrict and she suddenly felt overwhelmed and desperately needed air. There was none that could be found in the classroom, so she did what she could. She ran. Past Draco who was still holding the necklace in a limp arm, up a large set of stairs, and through a trapdoor until she couldn't climb any higher. She was at the top of the Astronomy Tower in the open air. She sucked in a shuddering breath, and felt her shoulders slump. She leaned heavily on the edge of the wall, feeling the smooth stone beneath her fingertips. The sky was so peaceful, with the stars twinkling above her. Why were they so tranquil, but her life was the complete opposite? 

She heard a noise behind her and turned to see Draco emerging from the trap door. He held out his arms to her.

"Please Hermione, let me explain." She didn't want to talk to him. She turned around looked over the wall again and stayed silent. "It was all a misunderstanding. I was busy thinking of a prop we could use for our presentation. I know you didn't want anybody to find out about…us…before the ball, so I lied to Pansy when she found out about the necklace. I made up some crackpot story so she would leave me, and us, alone, but before I realized it, she was kissing me. I didn't want to, Hermione. Honest!" His voice suddenly dropped. "It's you I want." Hermione was quiet throughout all of this. She just didn't know what to think. She desperately wanted to believe him, to trust him again. She faced him again. His eyes showed nothing but sincerity. She felt the tension inside of her break down and she ran into his arms. 

"Oh, Draco," she sobbed. "I'm sorry I didn't believe you before. It was just so hard for me to face you after I saw you kissing Pansy. I won't distrust you again!" 

"You won't have a reason to." This set Hermione off again, and Draco just held her as she cried, releasing what was left of her anxiety and pain. Her tears finally slowed down and she just stayed in his embrace, enjoying being so close to Draco with him stroking her hair, comforting her. 

"So you'll still go to the ball with me then?" he asked as they finally broke away. Hermione grinned. He was so sweet. 

"Of course." She smiled shyly as he fastened the glowing necklace around her and she gave him another hug. "Umm…are Ron and Harry…you know…mad?"

Draco grinned at her. "I'm not sure-- I chased after you once you left the room, but if they are, don't worry about it. It'll be alright." He gave her another hug for good measure and Hermione had never felt safer and more peaceful then she did at that moment.

"I wish we didn't have to go back to class. It's so nice out here."

"Then we don't have to. We can just stay here and wait for class to finish before we go back." And that was just what they did. 

*****

"Welcome everybody to another beautiful, frosty day. Today's quidditch match of Slytherin versus Gryfinndor was held to honour of this Valentine's day! Both these teams are competing for a spot in the semi-finals. Today's starting lineup for Gryfinndor is..." 

Draco tuned out Lee Jordan's voice and shivered in the cold. The temperatures were near zero degrees centigrade (32 Fahrenheit), and the quidditch players only had their game robes on, but at least they were heavy and provided some warmth. He breathed a ring of water vapour into the chilly air and prepared to launch into the air as Madam Hooch strode onto the field. He stayed at the far corner of the pitch because by then, most of the school had heard that he had asked Hermione to the ball, and he was avoided by all Slytherins, as was she by all Gryfinndors. He only hoped that his father hadn't heard about it yet.

__

TWEET! The whistle blew, and off flew the quidditch players. Draco flew around, searching for the snitch while trying to escape from the dangers of bludgers as they sped around. For some reason, they seemed extra vicious today and were zooming around trying to unseat a large number of people. Draco thought that he saw a flash of gold and sped towards the opposite end of the pitch. As he flew by the stands, he saw a green uniform amid a sea of red. He turned his head and out of the corner of his eye, he saw a flash of red go plummeting over the railing of the stands.

"Hermione!!!" he yelled. Heart thudding, he raced to catch her. At that point, he felt rather than saw Potter flying close behind him, when suddenly a _whoosh_ of a bludger took Potter out. "Hermione," Draco whispered. He leaned forward on his broom, urging it to go faster. He was certainly glad that his father had gotten him the fastest new broom on the market, the _Thunderbolt GX_. He had to catch her! He just _had_ to! "Come on, come on!" he yelled at his broom. He was just inches out of reach of Hermione, and she was tumbling to the ground at a high speed. Finally, he managed to shoot his broom under her, catching her in his arms. He fell off of his broom and onto the hard pitch two feet below, Hermione still in his arms. The crowd held their breath as Draco climbed to his knees and pulled Hermione up with him. Then, the crowd went crazy. There was loud applause on all ends of the stadium and a few whistles and catcalls as Hermione threw her arms around Draco. He could only hear his blood rushing in his ears as the adrenaline rush wore down. 

"Hermione, you're okay," he whispered to her. He planted a kiss on the top of her head. Just then, Harry and Ron landed next to them. 

"Thanks," Harry said gruffly. He hesitated for a moment, then offered his hand. Draco grinned, released Hermione, and shook it. Then he shook Ron's hand. He knew what this meant-- although they might not be exactly happy with his and Hermione's relationship, he knew that they would at least make an effort to accept it.

Ron then turned to Hermione. "Are you alright, 'Mione? What happened?" he asked with concern. She looked rather shaken, although that was understandable as she had just plunged a few hundred feet.

"I-I don't know. I was just watching the game, when suddenly someone came behind me and pushed me. The next thing I knew I was falling to the ground." Draco narrowed his eyes and glared up at the stands. He saw a strawberry blond head discreetly making its way to the back of the bleachers.

"Pansy," he muttered, anger coursing through his veins. He started towards the bleachers when he found to his surprise that Hermione was grabbing onto his and Ron's hands and giving Harry a pleading look. 

"Please don't," she begged. "The teachers will deal with her. I just don't want you guys to get expelled or lose your place on the team. She's not worth it. Please don't." Draco took one look at the earnest look in her eyes and felt some of the anger leave him, filled only by weariness.

Madam Hooch approached the small group just then. "Everything alright?"

"Yes Madam Hooch," they chorused. 

"Fine then. Since it doesn't look like you've been injured, Miss Granger, please return to your seat so the game can be resumed." She took notice of the panicked look that flashed across Hermione's face. "Do not worry Miss Granger. Miss Parkinson has been taken to the Headmaster's office. She will not bother you any more." Hermione thanked her and headed back to the stands after wishing all of the boys good luck. Madam Hooch blew the whistle twice, and all of the players mounted their brooms and took off into the air. Draco felt much lighter now that Hermione was happy and forgiven by her best friends again, and he felt sure that things would go very well tonight.

*****

"That game was so amazing! Are you sure you're all right Hermione? That was some fall! It must have been nearly 200 feet! It sure is a good thing that Draco caught you! I guess it means that you made up then," Ginny said, raising her eyebrows and giving her a suggestive look. Hermione opened her mouth to speak, but Ginny interrupted her. "Don't bother telling me. I already heard from most of the school…he gave you a necklace. Is this it?" Hermione nodded, grinning. 

"Isn't it lovely?" Hermione said, beaming.

"It's more than lovely! It's gorgeous! It must have cost him a tiny fortune. It's so romantic!" Hermione blushed. She wished that Ginny would stop talking about it, but it made her smile every time she heard it. She knew that Ginny was rather talkative anyway, and since the ball was only a few hours away, she was extra excited because Harry had _finally_ gotten a clue and asked her to be his date.

"Anyway, that was an excellent game. Our win will put Gryfinndor in the lead of the running for the House Cup for the 5th year in a row now. We're really on a winning streak," Hermione said, trying to turn the conversation in another direction. She didn't really need to, as they heard a _ding_ of a timer go off.

"Alright Hermione, that's it. The Sleekeazy Hair Potion should have set your hair now. Hermione removed the plastic bag covering her hair, and now, instead of being bushy and frizzy, her hair was sleek, soft, and fell in waves.

"And my little miracle hair product does it again," joked Hermione. Ginny began to style her friend's hair. She pulled it into a ponytail and clipped it higher up on Hermione's head.

"I wonder where the guys are. They can't be getting ready this early-- last year I heard that they only started dressing when the ball was a half-hour away."

"They said that they had something to do after the game," Hermione replied.

"Maybe they're planning a party. Fred and George are graduating this year, and I'm sure that they want to go out with a bang. I hope they don't ruin the ball. Some strange twist of fate or a temporary loss of sanity caused Dumbledore to put them in charge of the decorations committee, and I'm almost scared to see the Great Hall," Ginny laughed. 

This type of insignificant conversation continued as the two girls got ready for the ball, excitement and romance mounting in the air.

*****

Harry and Ron, contrary to belief, were not plotting a party or ways to ruin the ball (although there would be a party later in the common room to celebrate their victory). Instead, they had approached Draco, giving him the 'big-brother/protective friend' talk. Draco found it oddly amusing, but had managed to hide his amusement and acted seriously.

After they left, he glanced at his watch-- there was about an hour 'til the ball, and he figured that he had better start getting dressed. This year, he had new dress robes that didn't look like the vicar robe that he had last year. These ones were silver and black to offset his eyes and hair. They were of course the latest in style, as his father wouldn't have it any other way. 

An hour later, he was waiting by the entrance hall for Hermione, as this was where they had decided to meet. Only through all of his 'training' as he was younger was he able to contain his excitement. Just the thought of going to the ball with Hermione brought a smile to his lips. He felt that it would be a night to remember.

"Hi Draco." Draco turned to meet the owner of the voice and his jaw dropped. For a few moments he stood speechless. Then he realized that his jaw was hanging open and quickly shut it, hoping that she didn't notice.

"W-wow Hermione! You look amazing!" Her hair was twisted into a high ponytail and curled at the ends, and sprinkled with sparkles. The rose he had given her was shrunk and tucked into her ponytail. She was dressed in a red satin dress that fell to her knees. Silver and gold brocade were shaped like leaves and flowers and twined their way up from the waist of the dress around her v-neckline, which proudly boasted the sparkling necklace, and up one strap of the dress. The dress hugged the curves of her body in all the right places. He couldn't help but gape again. "You look absolutely amazing."

"Thank you. You look great too." He offered her a rose corsage with baby's breath surrounding it. He saw her smile as he slid it onto her wrist. "Thank you."

"Shall we go then?" 

"Yes, we shall." Hermione laughed, the ice broken. They joined hands and walked the rest of the way into the Great Hall. Couples were lined up waiting to go in. As Draco and Hermione joined the crowd, the others stared at the attractive couple. 

'Looks like I got the belle of the ball,' Draco thought proudly. At that moment, the doors to the Great Hall opened and the students in the hall all gasped. 

"Fred and George did a great job," Hermione remarked. That was an understatement. The walls were lined with sparklers that were arranged in the shapes of flowers, bushes, and grass, making the large room seem like a garden. Pinkish lights were glowing softly overhead, lighting the room dimly. Some were even in the form of chandeliers. Dozens of little tables were spread out across the room with dark red tablecloths and candles on each one. The dance floor was lit up with pinkish lights underneath. Happy Valentine's Day was scrawled across the wall magically. The entire room looked…magical.

The crowd entered the room, ooh-ing and ah-ing over the resplendent decorations. They all eventually seated themselves at tables either with friends, or with their date for the night. Hermione and Draco chose the former. When everyone sat down, Dumbledore arose.

"My dear students, we are here at our second annual ball. With love in the air this Valentine's day, I can see some couples who were destined to be together," he beamed down at Harry and Ginny, "and some recent ones that are somewhat surprising, but a welcome and joyous union at Hogwarts." Hermione and Draco blushed. "I hope you will all enjoy the ball, but first we must all stuff ourselves with this delicious feast." He waved his hands and menus appeared at everyone's tables. 

After everyone had their fill, a few of the tables were moved out of the way and people began to gravitate towards the dance floor. This year, Celestina Warbeck was the singer hired. She launched into her latest hit, Under Your Spell, and couples began dancing to the fast-paced song. 

"Care to dance?" Draco asked Hermione. She smiled and willingly obliged. They stepped onto the dance floor and danced…and danced and danced and danced. After an hour, Draco was exhausted, but he didn't want to leave. Everybody around him was panting for breath after another half-hour.

"What's happening?" he cried as he tried to leave the dance floor, but was unable to.

"Fred and George!" Hermione exclaimed, staring at the mischievous twins who were standing at the edge of the floor, laughing like mad. They had put dancing charms and hexes on the floor, making the people keep dancing. Draco dug into his robes pocket and produced his wand. He muttered the counter-curse and trudged off the dance floor, his weary legs barely supporting him and Hermione. They downed a few glasses of punch and returned to their table. 

"Fred and George are really going to try and land themselves a record for detentions, aren't they?" Harry asked, grinning wryly as the couple joined him, Ginny, Ron, and Lavender. 

"Why do I have the feeling that the trick with the dance floor wasn't all they had planned?" Hermione asked wearily.

"Because it's Fred and George," Ron replied just as wearily, as Lavender had dragged him onto the dance floor as well. Hermione's question must have been the twins' cue, because at that moment, all of the lights exploded in a shower of sparks and sparkles, leaving the Great Hall lit only by the "garden" on the walls, the candles on the tables, and an occasional light that hadn't shattered.

"I think we should go now," Draco whispered to Hermione. 

"But the dance is still going on," she replied, confused. He gathered up a few shreds of courage.

"I know, but no one else will be around." Hermione blushed at this, but still took his hand and sneaked out of the Great Hall.

'She's actually going for it,' Draco thought, somewhat in wonderment.

"Well, where should we go?" she inquired. 

"Outside?" he suggested. She agreed and they strolled leisurely on the lawn, taking in the magnificent view of the stars.

*****

(**A/N:** This section is just continuing from the scene before the asterisks, but from Hermione's POV)

"Oh, look!" Hermione suddenly said, pointing at the sky. Together, they watched a shooting star cross the path of the constellation they now recognized as Canis Majoris. "Make a wish," she whispered.

"I don't think I need to wish on a star," Draco suddenly said. Hermione tilted her head, looking at him with a questioning look. "I can make my wish come true now." He began lowering his face towards her. Her breathing accelerated and her heart was hammering in her chest. This is what was about to happen in the coach-ride from Hogsmeade. This is what she had been fantasizing about for so many months now.

Hermione shut her eyes as Draco's lips met hers. All was right in the world at that moment. Actually, the world didn't even exist anymore to the couple-- all that mattered was that they were together and…

Draco moved away, a blush reddening his face. "Hermione, I love you." Her eyes filled with tears and glistened in the moon- and starlight.

"I love you too."

…and they were in love.

Above them, the stars twinkled as if they were celebrating. Draco's arms rose up and held Hermione softly and hers wrapped around his shoulders. Love flowed around them as they kissed again, under the stars.

The End

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A/N: sob It's over! I've finished my longest fanfic ever, and I owe it all to you wonderful reviewers! I love you all! Finally, Hermione and Draco managed to end up happily together, even though it took me 6 months to write, and it's almost 3am and I have school the next morning! : ) I hope that you've all enjoyed this fanfic. Please review this final chapter, and my thanks will go out to all those who have reviewed my story! (the thanks to be posted next week) : ) Thank you all! So review!

PS: Part of my author's note was deleted in the previous chapter, but it basically said that if you guys need some more draco/hermione, visit my friend jd and my site:

www. geocities. com/ tomemma. html

there aren't any spaces in the address tho, I just put them in to make sure that it didn't get deleted again! :) enjoy! : )


	8. Thanks Everyone!

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A/N: Hey people! 39 pages (without author's notes) and 63 reviews later…here come the thanks! I never would have done it without all you wonderful people! :D Really! A round of applause to you all! : ) So I really hope you enjoyed Under the Stars, and it's finally over! :D along with SCHOOL! :D begins singing No more pencils, no more books! No more teachers' dirty looks! Lol! sob for those of you who've read the 5th book by now… I CAN'T BELIEVE SHE KILLED THAT PERSON OFF!!! sob Alright, I've calmed down now, and time for the thanks! :D

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jd: ahh…my most faithful reviewer of every single chapter and story that I've written! Thank you so much for everything you've done/given: the critiques, the encouragement, the advice, the site, the rant, and for showing me Tom's interview because I don't have the DVD for COS! Lol! yes I know I must learn HTML! Well…there's always summer…and the 8 days after summer school n before vacation time! :D fanfiction and movies galore!!! :D

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Atepogs: thanks Atepogs! My 2nd reviewer!

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Jaded: thanks a lot! I'm glad you liked my story! : )

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Lanjelin-lover: Thanks so much for reviewing my early chapters when I needed the most encouragement! Perfect? Really? Lol! I tried my best on it, and I know it's not perfect, but I'm glad you liked it! :D

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DragonFly: Hey there! Thanks for the reviews and the advice! I hope I made the chapters long enough now! The last one was… 5x longer than my first! Lol! Of course! No one can resist Draco!!! Hehehe! Wow…that 'plz update' review was my longest yet! 18K according to hotmail! : P

Xamphia: Thanks for the review! I check out your story, and it's really interesting! :) keep it up!

Poke: Thanks for the review! They _do_ make a cute couple don't they? :) I'm glad you like the thought switches and the story! : )

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Elena/PlasticPanda: Yay! Glad you liked the story and I took the advice n comments to heart! Lol…too short? I think that was my fourth longest chapter! Lol well, I made them longer, and I'm happy that it was 'adorable' *grin* : P

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dracolover: Thanks! : )

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skye: Thank you very much! They _are_ cute together! Lol

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jennyinhre: Hey jenny! Happy that I could keep your HP appetite healthy… I'm sure that Draco _could_ be a nice guy! And we all love that sneer, don't we?

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Katina Wellson: Thanks for the tips! I realized what I had done for the 2nd half of the 3rd chapter, and I made sure to fix that for the rest of the chapters…sorry sheepish grin I got a bit lazy! : P

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incognita: Thanks for all the reviews! I hope you liked how I used the necklace! Or was I building it up too much? Anyway, I don't know if you managed to find the last two chapters cuz I know I took forever to update, but I hope you did, and I hope you liked them! :D

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Anonymous/Chryztii: Did I spell that right? I think I did something wrong, but I'm not quite sure what it is… Anyway, thnx for the reviews (for Twister too) and I know it was super gushy (which was kinda what I was aiming for…fluff! Sugary fluff! Lol) but your reviews were really interesting to read and I'm glad you could find the main 'themes' of the story! And yes, draco does have issues! Lol!! in some parts, but he still looks so good! : P

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Anabelle: I know that you probably aren't reading this because my first chapter was so 'lame' but what did you expect? It's fluff! And I ruined _your_ night? Anyway, thanks for the flame…see jd's story for the rant!

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XLouisax: :D thanks so much! I'll be sure to check out your DM/HG fic! : ) lol! I'm glad that you really got into the third chpater (the 'almost kiss' scene)! :D 

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Cory: hey Cory! Thanks for the review! Sorry to leave u hanging so long like that, but I hope you liked it in the end, and how I used the necklace! :)

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sarah22222: Thank you for the review! I did write the scene with the kiss (I hoped you liked that) but they didn't _really_ kiss in the 3rd chapter! Anyway, thnx!

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Amanda/PrEcIoUs DeSiRe: Hey Amanda! Thanks for the reviews for all my stories and for the nice feedback! :D It's nice to see that you liked the 6th chapter! :) Now go and update yours!

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cremefairy15: Awww…thanks! :) hehe…a soap opera! Well..at least it didn't take a year for like…2 events to happen! : P You can bet I was smiling when I read your review in any case! And to you, smile as always! : )

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Shy Sorceress: Thanks! I'm glad you think that my story's cute and well written, but I'm sure there's still pah-lenty of stories out there that are way better than my modest little fluff fic! Thanks for the review though! :D it certainly made my day! :)

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fire_orchid: Your review was nice and inspiring, but I'm sorry to have left you so long without this updating! 4 months, I know hangs head in shame But, I hope I made it up with back-to-back reviews, and all before the 5th book, so I hope you liked those! Perhaps I will write another short, fluffy dm/hg story, but maybe not for awhile? I don't know…but thanks for the review anyway! :D

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Twitch: :D thanks! And I took your suggestion cuz it was leaning in my favour (lol) and finished it off in another 2 chapters after the…5th I think! :)

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Carla: Did I satisfy your want for jealous Ron scenes? I would have liked to do more, but I wanted to wrap it up with happy endings, so I had to make Ron n Draco friendlier! I'm happy you liked the story! :D Thanks!

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Sky*Angeli: YAY! Glad you liked it! Thanks for the review!

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dreamingoftom: Thanks so much for all of your reviews! They really made me get off my butt and start writing! I know only one (for chapter 5) showed up on the reviews page here, but I got them all, and they were all really motivating! Thanks again!

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Gia Black: Thanks! Lol…I'm glad I managed to impress you with my total, absolute piece of fluff! : P

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MrS_DacO_MaLfOy: hehe! Aww…thanks! Lol! awesome chapters? :P lol! thanks for the review!

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Chica100123: Thanks!

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Kiya Kideackiy: Thank you!

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Erriy: Glad you liked it! Thanks for the review!

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SportzGurl: YAY! :D Was it really funny? Coool! Haha…better response than I imagined! Lol! Yes...I left that cliffie..I know I'm evil : P but I managed to redeem myself by updating the next day…right? Right?! Hehe! Thanks for the review!

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Jen: I considered a second 'almost kiss' and then getting caught by ron n harry, but if that happened, I don't know what they would have done to Draco…and we all need him in the story! Lol! Thanks for the suggestion tho and ur reviews!! Hehe…this is my only draco/hermione, but maybe there'll be more? I dunno yet…but not for awhile…

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IceDragon: Aww…thanks! :) Glad you thought it was sweet n cute! :D blush

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Honmioncoinny: Gee..I hope I spelled that right! Lol! I'm considering writing another one…but I don't know if it'd be hermione/draco! Well..we'll see, and I'll tell you if I do come up with anything new for hermione and draco!

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eth: hehe! Thanks for the review! :P *grin back*

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sydney-the-great-blonde: Thanks! Glad you liked it!

And to all those who, in the future, review (if anyone does, that is), I thank you, and I read and cherish every single review! Thank you! Merci beaucoup! Muchas gracious (ß hope I spelled that right)! Doh jeh! Sheh sheh! Lol..and that's as far as my language skills go, but you get the idea! And once again…thank you all! :D


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